Interviews with RIAC experts
After President Vladimir Putin signed the treaty on Crimea's accession to Russia on March18, 2014 the imposition of U.S. and EU sanctions against Moscow has become more likely. We have met Vladimir Baranovsky,... ... Contemporary Development to obtain their views on the future of Russian-American relations and U.S. strategy on the settlement of the Ukraine crisis.
Vladimir Baranovsky
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The situation might trigger a more profound dialogue, unknown before the Ukraine predicament
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... understandably displeased. They will remain displeased. They must learn to make peace with this defeat. And let’s be honest: it IS a defeat. A relevant piece of territory is now going to be part of the Russian Federation and no longer part of Ukraine. But Russia has the superior military force in Crimea and the Crimean people have voted their own political will in a referendum that supports Russia. And please, no more discussions about its legitimacy. It was unfortunately laughable when the US Ambassador to the UN Samantha Power mentioned that ...
... Without Crimea, which traditionally has opposed Euro-integration, the balance will shift still further towards Europe. The West, feeling guilty for being spineless in relations with the former Ukrainian leadership and for not being tough enough with Russia over the Crimea situation, will make concessions to Ukraine and fast track put the procedure of integration into NATO and the European Union on a fast track. In this regard, it is revealing that the European Union has unilaterally lifted duties on Ukrainian exports. It should have happened gradually, and ...
... Europe’s partnership ambitions. They have to put on the boxing gloves; they can knock Russia out in the first round. It will not be painless, but it will be worth it.
Because... ... re-written, understandably worrying the EU member states of East Central Europe. The Crimean adventure, seasoned with a large amount of the usual disinformation, has occasioned... ... — much like the last time in Georgia. He now has the recipe.
But the situation in Ukraine is bound to escalate. It will not come to a Cold War — but it looks like...
... steps, as demonstrated by the controversial language legislation, which was quickly repealed in the midst of international uproar. But they are not fascists after all. They would never have spat Russia in the face by cancelling the contract.
Annexing Crimea, Russia has in fact given up the rest of Ukraine for good. Unless this is not the end of the story — though a similar course of action in Eastern Ukraine is unlikely. The threat is clear: 60 000 Russian troops have reportedly gathered in the border areas. But everyone knows that, if Ukraine ...
... whether they will be part of Ukraine or part of Russia. While the referendum is no doubt important to people living in Crimea, I for one remain highly skeptical that the results will actually be the ultimate arbiter on the territorial decisions made about Crimea. The outside players, namely Ukraine, Russia, the United States, and the European Union, are simply too big and too influential to let this small peninsula play an independent role far beyond the geopolitical football that it represents. I feel deeply for the people of Crimea, but the bitter ...
... revolution is a time where many states would feel almost obligated to engage the instability, real or perceived, in order to safeguard its strategic interests or further enhance areas of strategic import that need improving. Russia doesn’t want Ukraine. Russia wants control of Crimea (whether that means seceding into Russian Federation territory or just de facto controlling the territory doesn’t really matter to Russian foreign policy/military strategists). Crimea’s importance to Russia as it’s sole warm-water ...
Many comments have been published about the outcomes of the Ukraine-Crimea crisis and Russia’s policy toward it with respect to the existing crises in the Middle East — Syria, Iran and Israel-Palestine. A lot has been said about a possible shift in Russia’s approach toward cooperation with the West, which is intensifying ...
... ‘imperialistic’ nature. This Cold War residue even made the categorization and scope of the conflicts themselves a source of political discord: Chechnya became ‘Southern Russia,’ South Ossetia became ‘Georgia,’ and Crimea has now become ‘Ukraine.’ In other words, time and again Russia preferred keeping situations more case-specific and minimalized, while the United States (in Russia’s opinion at least) effectively re-characterized the situations so that they seemed more far-reaching and maximized in terms of danger and ...
... be part of Ukraine – unfortunately for Russia. There have been calls in the past from Ukrainians for the country to be split into federations, and Crimea used to want to be closer to Russia. But the murders on Maidan Square, Russian troops in Crimea, and Russian fighters in Eastern Ukraine have turned the situation around. Those Ukrainians who thought they wanted to be together with Russia now want to be part of Ukraine: they don’t want any more military actions.
Who do you think might come to power in Ukraine?
There are already ...
