... direction has not stopped.
Second, while the focus of geopolitical confrontation between the West (the U.S. and its EU allies) and Russia has shifted from the Caucasus to the Middle East and Ukraine since 2014-2015, this region remains among the most turbulent ... ... separate ethno-political conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. There was a quality change in the role of external forces. Turkey’s unprecedented involvement in the Azerbaijani military campaign to restore the latter’s territorial integrity was ...
...
The question of humanitarian access into Idlib is now emerging as a central focus of new international politicking. In so doing, this small province could be pivotal to the future of the larger stalemate that has left the United States, Europe, and Russia locked in an unwinnable status quo.
Russia has said that it plans to veto an extension of cross-border UN aid delivered from Turkey, authorised under UN Security Council resolution 2533, which is up for renewal in July, potentially depriving the population of a vital lifeline amid desperate conditions. Moscow says that all aid should be channelled from Damascus via three new ...
... government broke out in Daraa to quickly spread to neighbouring towns and villages.
Russia and the EU in Syria: Need for New Approaches? RIAC Working Paper?
Had I been... ... maintains a largely symbolic military presence in Syria’s northeast regions, while the European Union is plainly unable to settle on a new strategy in Syria.
Should Russia... ... an open question. Is the dog wagging the tail or is the tail wagging the dog?
Could Turkey be the principal beneficiary? Establishing buffer zones in Idlib and in Syria’s...
... Khabarovsk, Alexey Navalny’s poisoning, protests in Belarus, revived conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, political crisis in Kyrgyzstan: Russia is facing a number of challenges internally and in its immediate neighbourhood.
Andrey Kortunov
, Director of the Russian ... ... Affairs Council (RIAC), shares his analysis of President Putin’s situation amid these crises, and of Russia’s relations with Turkey and the EU.
What does Vladimir Putin's current situation look like, amid the different crises Russia is facing at home ...
... neutrality goes so far that Moscow supplies
weapons to both sides of the conflict
. While Russia's military strength is enough to keep the conflict from escalating severely, without Russian intervention, there will be no de-escalation and no ceasefire. Turkey, on the other hand, is very eager to extend its sphere of influence deeper into the Caucasus.
Andrey Kortunov:
Recep Erdogan in a Russian Minefield
What can the European Union do to ameliorate the situation and promote the pursuit of open-ended, peaceful negotiations? French President Macron, as a co-chair of the Minsk Group, is taking
the lead
, and pushing for a ceasefire together with President Trump and ...
... Erdogan's behavior could damage Moscow's own image and international prestige
While the Russian Federation is actively pursuing the cultivation of its Soft Power, the results... ... the “
SOFT POWER 30
” Index, for 2019, places Russia 30
th
among 30 states, below Turkey's 29th score. Admittedly, these are quite “Russophobic” times in the West... ... however, is part of
International Customary Law
, ratified by 167 states and by the European Union (EU), which Turkey hopes to join. Thus, the undisputed applicability...
... respect, interaction between Russia and the West still has a significant influence on the situation. European countries and the European Union as a whole, as well as the United States, are stepping up their activity in the Balkans in a big way. Russia has also increased its presence in the region, relying to a greater degree on economic and humanitarian cooperation. However, the Balkans remain attractive for other actors as well, with Turkey, China and the Persian Gulf states exhibiting a growing interest in a region. In that respect, it would be useful to explore ...
... editorial team recently sat down with
Ian Bond
, Director of Foreign Policy at the Centre for European Reform. Bond is an expert in Russia and the former Soviet Union, European foreign policy, as well as Europe/Asia relations and US foreign policy. In this interview,... ... markets and not favor the creation of European champions, let the market decide, who is the champion and who isn’t.
Recently, Turkey launched military operations in northern Syria. In your opinion, how does the EU see Turkey’s actions in Syria?
I think ...
How to cut the Geopolitical Gordian Knot in Cyprus
In three essays for RIAC, since summer 2017, and in
Russia-Cyprus Relations: A Pragmatic Idealist Perspective
, we tried to describe, explain and defend why and how these relations ... ... extended only to the US protection of Exxon Mobil’s explorations in the Cypriot Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), then, given Turkey’s escalating threats and daily provocations, the “hope” was rational and fully justified. Also, it would be justified ...
... Syrian actors in the process, the European outlook, and the Turkish course on economic recovery in Syria with a focus on Afrin and the «Euphrates Shield» areas.
Alexander Aksenyonok, RIAC Vice President, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia, presented the Russian view on the challenges of economic recovery in Syria. Some ideas were expressed by Ruslan Mamedov, RIAC Program Assistant, and Yuri Barmin, RIAC Expert, who also moderated one of the sessions.
