Section: Main news
Remembering the Day Russia Invaded Ukraine
Two years ago on February 27, Russia invaded Ukraine. On the heels of the Euromaidan Revolution and the vicious sniper attacks that killed 103 Ukrainians, Russian President Vladimir Putin saw an opportunity and ordered the military takeover of Crimea. The operation began when Russian military personnel, disguised as little green men in unmarked...
In the Absence of American Leadership, Germany Steps in to Engage with Russia—at the EU’s Peril
One particularly visible trend at the recent Munich Security Conference was America’s disengagement from European security issues. Foreign leaders often spoke without referring to the United States, and there was little sign of US involvement beyond its military participation in NATO. Washington’s priorities clearly revolved around...
Parliament Votes to Weaken Ukraine’s Key Anti-Corruption Law
Since the overthrow of former President Viktor Yanukovych, the attitude of Ukraine’s post-Maidan government toward reform could best be described as ambivalent. Last week was a case in point. While Kyiv and its Western partners remained riveted by the fate of Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk, parliament greatly weakened a key...
Russia’s Pernicious Hybrid War Against Ukraine
In recent months, the relative calming of the Russian-Ukrainian war in the Donbas has led many observers to describe this confrontation as yet another “frozen conflict” in the post-Soviet space. Yet even if Russian military activities ceased completely, the analogy is misleading. It is not always understood that Ukraine’s neighbor to the...
How Soft Power Works: Russian Passportization and Compatriot Policies Paved Way for Crimean Annexation and War in Donbas
The following is an edited excerpt from Agnia Grigas’ new book, Beyond Crimea: The New Russian Empire. The book examines Moscow’s policies toward Russian compatriots in former Soviet republics, including Ukraine where they laid the groundwork for Crimea’s annexation and the conflict in the Donbas. Moscow’s policies towards...
How Cities You’ve Never Heard of will Shape the Future
The world is urbanizing at breakneck speed. But not all regions are moving at the same speed. Most population growth today and tomorrow will occur in the sprawling cities and slums of Africa and Asia. Just three countries — China, India and Nigeria — will account for 40 percent of global growth over the next decade. Meanwhile, many cities in...
A Pyrrhic Victory for President Poroshenko
On February 16, the Ukrainian parliament deemed the performance of its government unsatisfactory with 247 votes, but only 194 parliamentarians voted for a no-confidence measure. The government did not fall as some had expected. Overtly, this strange vote may appear a victory for President Petro Poroshenko, but it seems a Pyrrhic victory that may...
US criticised over Syria
The US is coming under increasingly bitter criticism for its perceived lack of leadership over Syria. ||| Washington – The United States is coming under increasingly bitter criticism for its perceived lack of leadership over Syria as the country’s brutal civil conflict heads toward new levels of intensity.Washington appears unable or...
Making Sense of the Turmoil in Kyiv
Turmoil in Kyiv continued as President Petro Poroshenko called on both Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk and Prosecutor General Viktor Shokin to resign on February 16. The President’s parliamentary faction then introduced a resolution in the Rada, Ukraine’s parliament, describing the performance of the cabinet of ministers, headed by...
A Way Out of the Crisis
In the village of Glebovka, on a road leading to the old hunting grounds of ex-Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, there is a small enclave of villas. Here, in the deep forest by the shores of the Kyiv water reservoir, sits a guest house that belongs to former Rada Deputy Mykola Martynenko, where confidential meetings between Ukrainian Prime...