Russia and the European Union: The Northern Dimension
Relations between Russia and the European Union (EU) are based on three main pillars: the Partnership and Cooperation Act (PCA) of 1994, the Common Strategy of the European Union on…
Will Russia Go for a Military Victory in Chechnya?
Six full weeks after the December 1999 parliamentary elections, Russian troops managed to raise their flags over the familiar ruins of the presidential palace in Grozny. Victory has been proclaimed…
Russian Policy Towards Ukraine, Belarus, and the Baltic States in the Putin Era
Russian policy towards Ukraine, Belarus, and the Baltic States depends primarily on domestic factors. Western influence is important in terms of setting well-known limits for what Russia should not do,…
Supporting Democratic Institutions Rather than ‘democrats’ in Russia
In the period leading up to Vladimir Putin's decisive victory in the first round of Russia's presidential election, individual personalities and not democratic institutions once more became the focus of…
The Prospects for ABM Treaty Modification
Since August 1999, the US-Russian START III/ABM Treaty talks have not shown evidence of any progress. At these talks, Moscow consistently refused discussing modification of the Anti-Ballistic Missile (ABM) Treaty…
The Finlandization of Russia? The Kremlin’s Geopolitical and Geo-economic Choices
Since the late 1990s, relations between Russia and the West have gradually but steadily deteriorated. Disagreements over the eastward expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), wars in Bosnia…
The Role for US Democracy Assistance: Helping Build Parties from the Bottom Up
Despite the extraordinary development of the Russian political party system over the past ten years of political transition, parties themselves remain elite-dominated organizations with little connection to societal interests. This…
A History of the ABM Treaty in Russia
In the current debate about the future of the ABM treaty, Russia's official position is that the treaty is "the cornerstone of strategic stability" and therefore an attempt to modify…
New Challenges to US-Russian Relations
The end of the "honeymoon" period between the United States and Russia has left US-Russian relations in a state of volatile ambiguity. The two countries need to quickly work out…
Reforming the IMF? Lessons from Assistance to Post-Communist Countries
The last year has seen a sharp turn in public opinion against Western assistance to former Communist countries, driven in large part by lurid scandals about the misuse of funds…
Russian Views on Kosovo: Synopsis of May 6 Panel Discussion
On the 6th of May five members of the Program on New Approaches to Russian Security (PONARS) discussed Russian views on Kosovo for a panel at the Kennedy School of Government…
Russian Entrepreneurship After the 1998 Crisis
More than one year has passed since the financial and economic crisis of autumn 1998. How do Russian entrepreneurs struggle through these critical moments? Who are the winners and losers…