... view that the nuclear deterrence theory, which has been in effect for half a century, has ultimately failed. However, this conclusion is neither absolute nor fair. The reason why the conflict between Russia and Ukraine did not escalate into a direct Russia-NATO confrontation, and the conflict between India and Pakistan did not develop into a major war between the two countries, is that the existence of the nuclear threat continues to play an important role. In any case, given the realities of the day, the ...
... Germans some day reacquired their inconvenient historical memory. NATO simply would not allow them to get rolling. And NATO, in any case, was no longer hostile to Russia, since the Cold War was over… (A few years later, they would similarly respond to Russia’s warnings that NATO’s admission of Eastern European countries would render it anti-Russian. Brussels hurried to reassure Moscow that, to the contrary, the alliance’s senior members would keep in check any anti-Russian inclinations of the new arrivals. There is no ...
... frictions. The situation is more comparable to that which was in Central Europe in the 1950s–1980s: a direct confrontation between two blocs, not separated by any buffer states or neutral zones.
Currently, all countries of the Baltic Sea region, except Russia, are members of the EU and NATO, but their internal situations are varying and changeable.
U.S. President Donald Trump has shifted the U.S.’s focus from Europe to China and the Pacific, and revised key elements of European policy.
For decades, relations between the U.S. and European ...
... racism, and many other detestable “isms,” including recently the liberal totalitarianism that is based on transhumanism, LGBTism, denial of history, and essentially anti-humanism.
First, about the prospects for our relations with Europe (the EU and NATO), then about what is to be done.
Our relations with Europe are the worst they have been in history. The level of Russophobia and anti-Russian sentiment is unprecedented not only among European elites but also among a growing share of the masses, stupefied by all-encompassing wartime propaganda. Europe has not yet openly declared war, but participates indirectly by arming enthralled ...
... could be talking about the situation in Central Europe in the 1950s–1980s, where two military-political blocs directly confronted each other, without any buffer states or neutral zones.
Currently, all the countries of the Baltic Sea region except Russia are members of the EU and NATO, but this does not mean that the situation within them is static. Moreover, we can speak with a high degree of certainty about some shifts. First of all, we are talking about US policy under President Donald Trump, who intends to shift the focus ...
... History suggests otherwise. Most institutions created in the mid-20th century have lost relevance in periods of upheaval. Even NATO and the EU, long considered pillars of the West, face mounting internal and external pressures. Whether they endure or give ... ... partner, not a driver of global policy.
The Trump administration’s economic policies highlight this shift. Measures targeting Russia, for example, are often less about Moscow and more about Beijing or other major powers. Even the conflict in Ukraine, while ...
The possibility of a return to extreme-era dynamics cannot be dismissed
The Ukraine conflict may well pave the way for a larger scale Russia-NATO confrontation. While hard to fathom and with everything suggesting that the scenario remains quite unlikely, it relies on nuclear deterrence as its main pillar. But just how effective can it be in averting a conflict?
US President Donald Trump’s ...
... Ukraine. Yet Trumpism should not be romanticized. The American elite remains largely hostile to Russia. There will be no new détente.
The war in Ukraine is becoming a war between Western Europe and Russia. British and French missiles already strike Russian targets. NATO intelligence is embedded in Ukrainian operations. EU countries are training Ukrainian forces and planning attacks together. Ukraine is just a tool. Brussels is preparing for a wider war.
What we must ask is: Is Western Europe preparing to defend ...
... and corresponds to the moment. An appeal to the bureaucratic and economic dimension of interdependence in the Euro-Atlantic region has allowed NATO leaders to solve at least two problems amid the current instability:
First, the persistence of the “Russian threat” allows NATO and the United States to try to use the moment to guarantee the stability of the bloc’s financing for the period after the end of the Ukraine conflict. The increase in defence spending by European allies has been articulated by Washington since ...
... the Baltic Sea region, and the decision by unfriendly states to deploy nuclear weapons near Russia’s borders. The conversation also explored the economic structures of the Baltic states, the implications of Finland’s and Sweden’s accession to NATO for regional security, and the current tensions in Russia–Poland relations.
Participants included:
Irina Novikova, Dean of the School of International Relations and Professor, Department of European Studies, SPbU
Svetlana Gavrilova, Program Director, RIAC
Igor Zhukovsky, Senior Research Fellow, Baltic ...
