Carnegie Moscow Center
Russian authorities see the protests as the most serious challenge to their power since taking office in 2000. The coming year will be momentous for Russian politics, with unpredictable outcomes and potentially dangerous consequences.
Twenty years after the fall of the Soviet Union, democracies need to develop a new model that fosters civic duty and responsibility in their citizens and takes a more global perspective on leadership in the modern world.
On its twentieth anniversary, the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction Program remains an important tool for international cooperation to reduce nuclear dangers, but there remain some tough questions about the continued viability of the model.
There is a fundamental disconnect between the West and Russia on the issue of missile defense, based on an outdated and incomplete understanding of the strategic environment and each other.
Vladimir Putin’s ruling United Russia party received just shy of 50 percent of the vote in the recent elections for Russia’s lower house in parliament, an unexpected blow to the once extremely popular ruler.
Almost two decades after negotiations began Russia is set to join the World Trade Organization. Russia, the biggest country to enter the WTO since China joined ten years ago, is expected to be confirmed as a member during the ministerial meeting in mid-December.
The recent elections in Russia saw a serious setback for the ruling United Russia party, reflecting the growing discontent of the country’s citizens.
It will be increasingly difficult for EU leaders and bureaucrats to continue supporting Vladimir Putin, with the European public opinion growing worried over the situation in Russia and critical of the policy of “pragmatic realism.”
Missile defense continues to be a potential game changer in the often strained strategic relationship between Washington and Moscow.
Russians should not expect modernization to be initiated from the top. Nor can a modern economy develop in Russia without reforming its political institutions, such as elections, the courts, and the law enforcement agencies.