Since mid-April, Russia has focused on capturing the Donbas. In the last week it seems as if Ukraine’s leadership is preparing the nation for a major defeat.
Austria’s foreign minister calls enlargement the EU’s biggest geopolitical instrument – but will member states use it to encourage candidates and would-be candidates at the upcoming EU Council?
Dushanbe wants obedience but treats the region as something to be exploited and ignored.
AFC Bournemouth won promotion to the Premier League this season. The club has seen remarkable success since it was bought by Russian petrochemicals trader Maxim Demin, but its owner is yet to give any interviews in English.
Russia’s ruble continued to rally strongly, dropping below the psychologically important RUB60 to dollar barrier again this week, its strongest level in four years. Russia’s national currency has been on a wild ride that will hurt the budget.
Lukashenko’s attempt to save face via mixed messages of peace and increased threats of war with the West and Ukraine haven’t got him very far and many Belarusians are more than eager to bring the fight to Lukashenko.
Rampant inflation has already eaten into household incomes, while more expensive credit will tighten wallets. The question is how deep the slowdown will be.
Whilst all eyes are on Donbas as Russia continues its devastating invasion of Ukraine, another war is being fought on our TVs, phones and computers: the culture war. From the start, Ukraine has been quick to establish the cultural narrative.
Belarus' prime minister said that Western sanctions had blocked almost all the country's exports to the EU and North America.
Ukrainian refugees seek shelter from heavy shelling in a school's basement as Russian troops grind ever closer.
Fresh prohibitions have crushed hopes that newly appointed 40-year-old president Serdar Berdimuhamedov would pursue a more enlightened path.
The accession of Finland and Sweden to Nato will transform the picture in the Baltic region but more military deployments are still needed, argue Baltic experts.
Uzbekistan's growth slowed in 2022, but if the pace of reforms continues to be as fast as in the last few years it is expected to rebound to around 10% a year once the current health and geopolitical crises are over.
This year it is spending more than 10% more than it did before its 2020 defeat of Armenia, and is planning to spend even more in coming years.
While Belarus' latest troop increases along the border with Ukraine have worried many, these actions should be seen in the light of Lukashenko's aim of de-escalating tensions with the West while showing loyalty to Putin.
The war in Ukraine has sent prices for food soaring, and they were already high due to the coronavirus pandemic. Even if peace returns tomorrow, prices for grain are likely to remain elevated for the foreseeable future.
Inflation variously measured at from 70% to 157% has wiped out pay rise gains. There are now more credit cards than people in Turkey.
Georgians make up the most prominent contingent of foreign fighters in Ukraine. At least nine have been killed.
The Presidents of Ukraine and Russia used their Victory Day speeches to draw parallels between the war in Ukraine and WWII, but Zelenskiy emphasised that Russia and Ukraine are now different countries.
The Belarusian regime is expanding the state authorities' grip on the economy to manage the sanctions pressure. However, this may have inverse effects.