Category: Eurasia

Is ‘Populist International’ Undermining Western Democracy?

     

Europe’s populists share ideas and ideology, friends and funders, notes analyst Anne Applebaum. They cross borders to appear at one another’s rallies. They have deep contacts in Russia — they… Read more »

West must focus on countering Russian disinformation

     

The president of Bulgaria is the latest figure to warn that Russia is trying to divide and weaken Europe, the BBC reports: Rosen Plevneliev warned of Russian influence in his… Read more »

What the West can do to contain Russia’s aggression, disinformation

     

Even before the December 2011 protests — and his own reelection as president in March 2012 — Vladimir Putin had begun signaling the return of a more authoritarian and aggressive… Read more »

Russia’s ambitions clash with its capabilities

     

Speaking at the 13th Valdai Discussion Club near Sochi last week, Russian president Vladimir Putin again railed at the US for allegedly misusing its global hegemony of the past 25… Read more »

Anti-corruption watchdog highlights push for reform in Azerbaijan

     

Baku has four months to rewrite its laws on NGOs or be suspended from the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative — a step that could jeopardise billions of dollars of loans… Read more »

Kremlin’s modus operandi – ideology or kleptocracy?

     

As the Kremlin gears up for Vladimir Putin’s last re-election bid in 18 months, anti-graft crusader Alexei Navalny (left) has emerged as the conduit of choice for rival factions to… Read more »

Once a symbol of hope, Hungary now a study in democratic frailty

     

Protesters with referee whistles disturbed the Hungarian government’s commemorations of the 60th anniversary of the anti-Soviet revolution of 1956 on Sunday, as supporters of Prime Minister Viktor Orban tried to… Read more »

Cold War 2.0? Confront authoritarianism by defending democratic values

     

Gen Sir Richard Shirreff remembers the moment he realized Nato was facing a new and more dangerous Russia. It was 19 March 2014, the day after Russia annexed Crimea from… Read more »

New voice of change helps Ukraine reinvent itself

     

Ukraine is at the center of Russia’s conflict with the West, playing a vital role in Vladimir Putin’s ambition to restore Russia’s great-power status, The Economist notes: The Kremlin has… Read more »

Russia’s disinformation can’t pretend to offer attractive ideology

     

Russian interference in America’s presidential election merits measured retaliation. But the West can withstand such “active measures”, The Economist notes: Russia does not pretend to offer the world an attractive… Read more »