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The Power Vertical

The Power Vertical is a blog and podcast for Russia wonks and Kremlin watchers by Brian Whitmore. It covers emerging and developing trends in Russian politics, shining a spotlight on the high-stakes power struggles, machinations, and clashing interests that shape Kremlin policy today.

Host and Eurasia Center Senior Fellow Brian Whitmore invites guest experts to deliver their insights and analysis in this weekly podcast. The Atlantic Council and the Charles T. McDowell Center for Global Studies at the University of Texas at Arlington co-sponsor this production.

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The Eurasia Center’s mission is to enhance transatlantic cooperation in promoting stability, democratic values and prosperity in Eurasia, from Eastern Europe and Turkey in the West to the Caucasus, Russia and Central Asia in the East.

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Turkish F-16 jet

NATOSource

Mar 4, 2014

Turkey Scrambles Jets After Russian Plane Flies Near its Black Sea Coast

By Reuters and Anadolu Agency

From Reuters:  The Turkish Air Force scrambled eight F-16 fighter jets after a Russian surveillance plane flew parallel along its Black Sea coast

Intelligence NATO
NATO flag at headquarters in Brussels

NATOSource

Mar 4, 2014

NATO Responds to Ukraine Crisis With ‘Rigorous and On-Going Assessment ‘

By NATO

The North Atlantic Council has met at Poland’s request to hold consultations within the framework of Article 4 of the Washington Treaty

NATO NATO Partnerships
Gripen Jets

NATOSource

Mar 4, 2014

Sweden Responds to Russian Exercises by Sending Jets to Baltic Base

By The Local (Sweden)

The Swedish Armed Forces sent extra air defence to the island of Gotland on Tuesday in response to a large-scale Russian training exercise being carried out in the Baltic Sea.

NATO NATO Partnerships

In the News

Mar 4, 2014

Hadley and Wilson: Putin’s Takeover of Crimea Part of Larger Strategy

By Damon Wilson and Stephen Hadley

Atlantic Council Executive VP Damon Wilson and Board Director Stephen Hadley write in the Washington Post:

Russia Ukraine

Article

Mar 4, 2014

Transatlantic Focus is Key to Helping Moldova Join Europe

By Damon Wilson

As a Small Nation Faces Russian Pressure, Europe’s Future is on the Line Moldovan Prime Minister Iurie Leancă’s meetings at the White House today are a crucial sign of US support for his leadership and for Moldova’s Euro-Atlantic future, especially alongside Russia’s invasion of Moldova’s neighbor, Ukraine. In November, Moldova, alongside Georgia, signed a European […]

Eastern Europe Moldova

In the News

Mar 4, 2014

Pavel: Perceived US Weakness Emboldens Putin

By Barry Pavel

Atlantic Council VP and Brent Scowcroft Center Director Barry Pavel is quoted in the National Post on the failure of Western powers to check Vladimir Putin’s aggression in Eastern Europe:

Russia Ukraine

Article

Mar 3, 2014

Russia, Ukraine, the Neighbourhood: Changing Putin’s Risk Calculus

By Matthew Bryza

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is part of the highest-stakes gambits of President Putin’s career. Putin is not bent on war or on dismembering Ukraine. Rather, he seeks to reverse his humiliating defeat in failing to intimidate Ukraine into abandoning its return to Europe.

Russia Ukraine

In the News

Mar 3, 2014

Benitez: Russian Invasion of Ukraine Demands NATO Response

By Jorge Benitez

Brent Scowcroft Center Senior Fellow and NATOSource Director Jorge Benitez writes for The Hill on how NATO should respond to Russia’s occupation of Crimea:

Russia Ukraine

New Atlanticist

Mar 3, 2014

US Must Pull Germany Into Helping Lead NATO Against Russia

By Erik Brattberg

If Russia pursues and consolidates its armed seizure of Ukrainian territory in Crimea, the US and NATO have no politically viable option for reversing that advance by military force. What the West can do, however, is too modify Moscow’s calculations, making it more costly for Putin to sustain his aggressive effort to hold Ukraine within […]

Germany Russia
President Barack Obama discussing Ukraine with national security advisors, Feb. 28, 2014

NATOSource

Mar 3, 2014

President Obama’s Foreign Policy is Based on Fantasy

By Editorial Board of the Washington Post

For five years, President Obama has led a foreign policy based more on how he thinks the world should operate than on reality.

China Russia

Experts

Events