Suchergebnisse

Argues that the US faces a "soft war" with Russia over influence, alignment, & values manifest in three distinct campaign objectives in the political competition for Europe eastern borderlands. In this light, the case is made that a European strategy for the Black Sea region is a revisionist strategy & will necessarily be competitive with Russia's perceived interests. Aspects of competition with Russia in the political, economic, & security dimensions are identified. Necessary elements of a Black Sea strategy capable of contending with the problem of Russia are outlined. Adapted from the source document.

In October 1997, the author accompanied French anthropogeographer Jean Malaurie on a two‐week trip in and around Nome, Alaska, in preparation for a circumpolar conference to be held in St. Petersburg in 1999. This essay describes encounters and conversations with area residents that took place during that trip, as well as observations of and on the courts, shamans, language, the tundra, and the aurora borealis.

In November 2012, Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel met reluctantly in Moscow for the annual German-Russian summit. It was widely reported that the summit, which had already been abbreviated to a few hours, did not go well. In reality, the summit succeeded in contradicting itself. Merkel infuriated Putin by suggesting that the imprisonment of the members of punk rock band Pussy Riot might be a human rights violation. This caused Putin to cite Pussy Riot as a case of illegal anti-Semitism which, he suggested, would be something Germany should understand. Despite the apparent political antagonism, the Summit concluded with German industrial giant Siemens signing a 2.5 billion euro deal with the Russian state railway for 675 railroad engines. What is so remarkable about the outcome -- Merkel playing to idealism, Putin pandering to nationalism, and both agreeing on trade -- is that the November summit was the product of a hard-fought strategic review in Berlin pitting human rights romantics against economic pragmatists. Neither side won nor altered the uncomfortable status quo in any recognizable way. Adapted from the source document.

November 22, 2010, was an inauspicious day to hold a summit in Brussels between the European Union and Ukraine. Officials were still straggling back from Lisbon after the previous weekend's NATO and EU summits, and they were dreading the looming financial crisis in Ireland and the possibility of conflict in Korea. By June 2010, otherwise sensible think tanks in Washington and Brussels were seriously debating whether Ukraine might have departed the Euro-Atlantic world entirely and returned to some trade association of Slavic tribes on the Russian steppe. And this is what makes the November 22nd meeting so remarkable: A roomful of unelected officials unexpectedly launched a policy aimed at the comprehensive engagement of Europe's east. With a single communique, a handful of European bureaucrats in Brussels brought Kiev into a closer association with European institutions than it has had in hundreds of years, if ever. Adapted from the source document.

Argues that post-Soviet Eastern Europe has entered a new historical period based on an unprecedented realignment in trade & multilateral institutions in European Union-Eastern European relations. At issue is how the region arrived at this point & when did things move away from integration & NATO expansion. It is contended that the new period began in 2009 & is marked by four key geopolitical developments: global recession; ideological reversal precipitated by the Russian-Georgian war; reconsideration of US national interests in the eastern Euro-Atlantic; & a reformulation of US's Russia policy. Characteristics of the new period are described. Attention is given to issues of identity with respect to Ukraine, likening EU relations with the country to those with Turkey, as well as to political-economic assertions. Some EU & Ukraine policy considerations are touched on in closing, highlighting the advent of soft power integration of the East. Adapted from the source document.