The Agenda for Arms Control Negotiations After the Moscow Treaty
Ratification of the Strategic Offensive Reductions Treaty (SORT, or the Moscow Treaty), signed by Vladimir Putin and George W. Bush on May 24, 2002, is all but certain. Critics in…
Political Reform or a Game of Survival for President Kuchma?
Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma is constitutionally prohibited from running for a third term. Viktor Yushchenko, the leader of the main opposition bloc Our Ukraine, is, according to opinion polls, the best placed…
Some Parallels Between Islamic Radicals in Russia and the United States
The first suicide bombing in Israel occurred in April 1993, and by September 11, 2001, 63 suicide bombings had taken place there. The attack on the World Trade Center, in which a…
Time to Get Off the Putin Path
In the last few years, Russia has become an increasingly hostile place for those who support democracy, human rights, and the rule of law. Political and social activists inside and outside Russia…
The State in the New Russia (1992-2004): From Collapse to Gradual Revival?
The very notion of the state implies that public authorities hold monopolies on three functions: Legitimate use of violence Provision of revenues by collecting taxes Control of monetary emission All…
‘Parallels’ and ‘Verticals’ of Putin’s Foreign Policy
Analysts of Russian policy often highlight the apparent lack of congruity between Putin’s domestic and foreign policy motivations. Russian domestic political development is seen as increasingly authoritarian as Putin and his allies…
Partners In Need: U.S.-Russian Cooperation on and Approaches to Anti-terrorism
Shaken to the core by the September 11 attacks, the United States naturally took the leading role in the global fight against terrorism. By demonstrating that even unprecedented military might…
New Round of Elections in Russia: New People, New Technologies… No Choice?
It has been a busy season for elections in Russia, with gubernatorial contests in St. Petersburg and Sverdlovsk (Ekaterinburg), the presidential election in Chechnya, and mayoral elections in several large Russian cities.…
U.S. Military Bases in Post-Soviet Central Asia: Economic Lessons from Okinawa
The new United States and coalition force military bases in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, established in 2002, have not attracted much media attention in the West. Yet as we know from cases elsewhere…
The Forced Choice Between Russia and the West: The Geopolitics of Alienation
On Sunday of November 21, 2004, every half hour the news headlines of the British Broadcasting Corporation reminded listeners around the world that the voters in Ukraine were to make a crucial…
The Challenge of an Undemocratic Russia
As weakened as it has been by its prolonged and poorly executed transition from central planning to a market economy, Russia remains a key player in international security. Geographically, Russia…
NATO, Russia, and the Baltic States
After the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States, Russian president Vladimir Putin was the first foreign leader to phone President George W. Bush to express his condolences. This…