The Real Russia ‘Reset’: Reassessing U.S. Sanctions Policy Against Russia
The use of targeted sanctions has been arguably the central response of U.S. foreign policy against Russia since the annexation of Crimea in 2014 […]
» Read moreCategory: Europe, EU
JRL NEWSWATCH AUDIO: “Biden Faces Decision On Gas Pipeline From Russia That Could Alienate Germany” – NPR
“The Biden administration has to decide whether to alienate Germany … continuing … Trump administration[] sanctions on companies building Germany’s gas pipeline from Russia. … Hundreds of feet below the surface of the Baltic Sea is an enormously long pipeline, snaking from northern Russia to Germany. … Nord Stream 2 … [would] roughly double Europe’s energy supply when … finished. […]
» Read moreU.S. Sanctions Against Russia May Be Recalibrated, But Overhaul Unlikely
(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org – Ingrid Burke – Feb. 19, 2021) Ingrid Burke is a fellow at Harvard’s Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies. As President Joe Biden settles into the Oval Office, he has filled the upper echelons of his new administration with officials who have vocally supported sanctions against Russia. While it is difficult to predict specific […]
» Read moreGazprom Plans To Start Nord Stream 2 Gas Pipeline This Year
Russia’s gas giant Gazprom plans to commission the controversial natural gas pipeline Nord Stream 2 this year, … TASS reported […]
» Read moreAny Increase in Western Sanctions on Russia will Only Make It Easier for Kremlin to Repress Its People, Inozemtsev Says
(Paul Goble – Window On Eurasia – Staunton, Feb. 13, 2021) One of the paradoxes of relations between Russia and the West is that when Russian actions at home or abroad prompt Western governments to react by seeking to impose penalties on Moscow, those penalties only make it easier for the Kremlin to repress its population at home, Vladislav Inozemtsev […]
» Read moreRUSSIALINK: “Gazprom Sets Record High Gas Exports to Europe” – Moscow Times
Russia’s gas exports to Europe hit a record high in January, according to … VTB Capital, as pressure over … Nord Stream 2 … continues to mount […]
» Read moreRUSSIALINK: “U.S. Will Lift Nord Stream 2 Sanctions if Europe Suspends Construction, Says Biden Advisor” – Moscow Times
… The U.S. imposed sanctions at the end of 2019 in an effort to halt the construction of the pipeline, which will transport Russian gas to Europe […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Russian Aggression Spurs Neighbors to Rebuild Defenses” – Wall Street Journal/ Michael M. Phillips, James Marson
“Sweden has overturned decades of its own defense and foreign policy to strengthen its military and tighten ties with the U.S.” “Wooden targets hide among … pine trees at the Gotland island army firing range … depicting foreign invaders … faces twisted with malice. … [with] no unit insignia, no flag patches. … Swedish army recruits peppering the targets with […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Angela Merkel mulls Russian answer to EU coronavirus vaccine bottleneck” – The Times (UK)/ Oliver Moody
“… Merkel and … Putin have discussed the possibility of making a controversial Russian vaccine in the EU as bottlenecks in supply slow down [some] [European] inoculation [efforts] …. but only [after] … Sputnik V … [is] authorised by the EU medicines regulator. … [which] could take several months … [I]t is thought … the vaccine has yet to be […]
» Read moreRUSSIALINK: “Foreign Policy Experts Map Russia’s Plans for 2021” – Moscow Times
We asked 10 experts to predict what Russia has in store for the world next year. (Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Pjotr Sauer – Jan. 4, 2021) Russia had to tread a fine foreign policy line in 2020. The country’s near abroad was rocked by unprecedented unrest as uprisings in Kremlin-friendly Kyrgyzstan and Belarus and war in the Caucasus challenged […]
» Read moreThe Second Karabakh War and Western Strategic Thinking
(The Kennan Institute – wilsoncenter.org/program/kennan-institute – Robert M. Cutler – Jan. 5, 2021) Robert M. Cutler is a Fellow at the Canadian Global Affairs Institute and a Practitioner Member of the Waterloo Institute for Complexity and Innovation, the University of Waterloo The Second Karabakh War has revealed the intellectual bankruptcy of the West’s penchant for grand strategic thinking, which stereotypes […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “After Momentous 2020, Russia’s Putin Enters New Year as Powerful as Ever; Kremlin leader takes action to cement his rule, repel challenges and spread Russia’s influence in moves that signal what’s likely to come next year” – Wall Street Journal/ Ann M. Simmons
“… [In] 2020 … Putin took bold moves to cement … power at home and extend … nearly two decades in power, a likely bellwether for [2021], when … [he] could squelch remaining domestic opposition and reinforce … influence abroad. … [D]issent has simmered. Massive protests in the Far East … over the arrest of a popular regional governor quickly […]
» Read moreRussia Cries War As U.S. Tries To Kill Nord Stream 2
(Oilprice.com – Tsvetana Paraskova – Dec. 21, 2020) The widening U.S. sanctions on the Russia-led natural gas pipeline project Nord Stream 2 are a kind of hybrid warfare used by the United States, Vladimir Putin’s Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov said on Monday. “This is indeed a variant of hybrid warfare, it is used as a hybrid war by the United […]
» Read moreWestern Sanctions Have Had ‘Outsized Impact’ On Russian Companies, Economist Says
… Russian corporations have lost almost $100 billion since sanctions were imposed … following the annexation of Crimea … equivalent to about 4.2 percent of the country’s economy [then] […]
» Read moreThose Russians Angry at Putin Not Necessarily Pro-Western and His Successor May Not Be Either, Kirillova Warns
Those … angry at … Putin and his failures at home and abroad are not necessarily pro-Western, Kseniya Kirillova says […]
» Read moreRUSSIALINK: “Over 20 NGOs appeal to Russian ombudsman, Council of Europe over broadening of foreign agent list, tightening of requirements” – Interfax
… The authors of the address added that, if these bills are passed, it will become far more challenging to organize rallies, demonstrations, processions, and pickets […]
» Read moreRussia in the Changing Post-Soviet Space
… The growing gap between the official Russian discourse and the prevalent perceptions in its neighborhood has become painfully evident […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Moldova Vote Winner Promises ‘Balanced’ Ties With West, Russia” – AFP/ France 24
“Moldova’s pro-European election winner Maia Sandu … vowed balanced ties with the West and Russia as Moscow-backed incumbent Igor Dodon conceded … and asked … supporters to refrain from violence. Sandu’s election is … as a major blow to the Kremlin[,] …. [that] wanted polarized Moldova to remain in its sphere of influence …[P]olitics in Moldova[,] … [located between Ukraine […]
» Read morePutin’s Foreign Policy has United West against Russia and Some Russians Against Him, Shevtsova Says
(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, Oct. 28, 2020) Vladimir Putin’s conviction that he could force the West to cooperate with him by aggressive actions against it has generated unintended consequences for the Kremlin both abroad, where the West has united against Russia, and at home, where some believe Putin isn’t being aggressive enough, Liliya Shevtsova says. The […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia makes missile offer in effort to restart talks on arms control” – Financial Times/ Henry Foy
“NATO rejected previous proposals by Moscow to freeze deployment in western regions.” “Russia has offered to stop deployment of a controversial missile system in an attempt to restart talks on arms control in Europe following the collapse of a cold war moratorium, in the latest outreach by the Kremlin that could de-escalate military tensions. Donald Trump’s administration withdrew from the […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “U.S. Broadens Sanctions to Thwart Completion of Russian Gas Pipeline” – Wall Street Journal/ Brett Forrest
“New measures target companies that would provide services or funding for vessels working on Nord Stream 2” “… [2019] U.S. Sanctions … focused on pipe-laying vessels for Nord Stream 2 and halted the $10.5 billion [natural gas] pipeline[,] … designed to transmit Russian gas to Germany, 100 miles short … beneath the Baltic Sea. … [A] State Department [web announcement] […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “With unrest on all sides, Russia’s regional muscle is being tested” – Washington Post/ Isabelle Khurshudyan
“… As Russia’s interests abroad have focused on building the country’s standing as a player on the global stage – including malicious operations such as trying to influence U.S. presidential elections – the Kremlin’s grip has weakened closer to home. Competition from Turkey, China and the West is increasingly challenging Moscow’s onetime dominance in the former Soviet space. … [and] […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin Loses His Footing in Russia’s Backyard” – Wall Street Journal/ Thomas Grove
“Washington has watched Russia expand its global influence, but along its borders, Moscow is losing its monopoly on power.” “… Putin has long tried to strengthen economic and defense relations across Eastern Europe and Central Asia …. Russia still has military bases in Central Asia and the South Caucasus … [T]here are strong commercial and cultural ties …. But … […]
» Read moreNord Stream 2 Nears Completion After Clearing Another Hurdle
Denmark cleared … the final hurdle to Nord Stream 2 potentially starting operations in Danish waters, while the U.S. continues its attempt to stop the Russia-led natural gas pipeline project […]
» Read moreBelarus Crisis Highlights Europe’s Energy Problem
(Oilprice.com – Vanand Meliksetian – Sept. 24, 2020) The ongoing demonstrations in Belarus and the looming instability are a threat to both Russia and the EU. Moscow prefers the continuation of Lukashenko’s regime due to political reasons. Europe, on the other hand, faces an energy crisis if the situation escalates which could lead to a disruption of supplies. Belarus’ geographic […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Four Myths about Russian Grand Strategy” – Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)/ Robert Person
“Myth #1: Russia’s grand strategy is driven by ideology …. Myth #2: Russia seeks to reconstruct the Soviet Union or Russian Empire. … Instead of a formal territorial empire … Russia endeavors to establish a privileged and exclusive sphere of influence across former Soviet territory. … [with] a seat at the table in the capital of every post-Soviet country. … […]
» Read moreRussian Interior Ministry Wants To Question Navalny In Germany
Russia’s Interior Ministry wants to question … Navalny in Berlin, where he is being treated after German doctors reported “unequivocal evidence” … he was poisoned with … military-grade nerve agent Novichok, contradicting … Russian counterparts who said they … found no trace of poison […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Navalny and Nord Stream 2; The poisoned Russian dissident opens a door for a Trump priority” – Wall Street Journal Editorial
“[G7] [f]oreign ministers … issued a joint statement … condemning … ‘the confirmed poisoning’ of … Navalny. … sa[ying] Germany … has concluded … he was ‘the victim of an attack with a chemical nerve-agent of the “Novichok” group, a substance developed by Russia.’ It called on Russia to investigate who is responsible, ‘bearing in mind Russia’s commitments under the […]
» Read moreRussian Elites So Integrated in the West that Western Governments Aren’t Prepared to Take Tough Action against Moscow, Shevtsova Says
(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, Sept. 7, 2020) Despite Kremlin actions like the Navalny poisoning, Western governments have largely limited themselves to tough public statements rather than serious actions, the reflection of a combination of circumstances that Western officials are generally unwilling to recognize, Liliya Shevtsova says. First of all, the Russian commentator points out, liberal democracies […]
» Read moreRUSSIALINK: “The West Is Outraged By Navalny’s Novichok Poisoning. That’s No Guarantee of Tough Sanctions.” – Moscow Times
Looming U.S. elections and disparate EU interests could translate into a symbolic response. (Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Jake Cordell – Sept. 4, 2020) Lawmakers across Europe and the U.S. are scrambling to respond to the revelation that Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny was poisoned with Novichok – a lethal Soviet-era military nerve agent – with the possibility of fresh sanctions […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin is reckless because we allow him to be” – Washington Post/ David Ignatius
“… Putin keeps defying the norms of international behavior. … Intelligence agencies have … evidence … Russian military intelligence officers, from … shadowy Unit 29155 of the GRU, paid … Taliban … whose bombing killed three U.S. Marines in … 2019. … [S]ources … [claim] forensic links between the [Afghan operation] GRU officers … and GRU colleagues who carried out […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “The U.S. Is Close to Killing Russia’s Nord Stream 2 Pipeline; But it’s a race between slow construction and slower sanctions” – Foreign Policy/ Amy Mackinnon
“Russia’s controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline is close to the finish line – but might be closer to finished as a viable project, after one of the companies involved in laying the pipe on the Baltic seafloor said … it would withdraw …. For years, the United States has tried to kill off Russia’s latest effort to strengthen its […]
» Read moreRUSSIALINK: “Which Countries Are Open to Russians – and Vice Versa?” – Moscow Times
… Russia also closed its borders to most foreign citizens, with exceptions for diplomats, relatives of deceased people, high-demand workers and other categories […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “With Friends Like These: Assessing Russian Influence in Germany” – CSIS/ Jeffrey Mankoff
… the Germany case study [from] an ambitious year-long CSIS initiative to analyze Russian influence activities […]
» Read moreMark Galeotti: “Re: Subject: A comment on Galeotti” [re: UK-Russian Relations, U.S.-Russian Relations, Nicolai Petro]
It’s always great when something you write receives a thoughtful response, but I did feel I needed make a couple of responses to Nicolai Petro’s open reply to my short commentary in The Spectator […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin plans to make the West destroy itself; Chaos and division is the real goal for Russia” – The Spectator (UK)/ Owen Matthews
“… only one person [will] be genuinely pleased with the Intelligence and Security Committee’s Russia report … and that’s … Putin. Russia emerges as an amorphous and formidable enemy – all the more so because the inconclusive and much-redacted report contains next to no substantiated allegations. Instead Russia appears as a phantom, unknowable menace, and this will spawn a thousand […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Putin’s Folly; Pompeo may be in an uproar over Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline, but it is hardly the geopolitical masterstroke he imagines.” – Foreign Policy/ Chris Miller
“As the United States [adds] … pressure … against Nord Stream 2, friction with Germany, which would receive much of the pipeline’s gas, will intensify. …. Many countries in Central and Eastern Europe see the pipeline as a glaring example of German hypocrisy … Berlin lectures them about carbon neutrality and human rights while guzzling fossil fuels from one of […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “What does the Russia report mean for British people and politics? Luke Harding considers the implications of the report on Moscow’s meddling” – The Guardian
“… The Russia report accuses the government of failing to investigate Russian interference in British politics, in particular during the 2016 EU referendum. The Commons intelligence and security committee[] … says Downing Street showed a ‘lack of curiosity’ over Kremlin meddling. … [not] say[ing] whether this complacency was deliberate or an omission[,] [e]ither way … a stunning rebuke of Boris […]
» Read moreRUSSIALINK: “Denmark Paves Way for Russia’s Nord Stream 2 Restart” – Moscow Times
Russia could restart construction on final pipeline stretch, while U.S. mulls super sanctions bill against project […]
» Read moreRUSSIALINK: “Where Can I Travel in Russia This Summer?” – Moscow Times
Russia opened its domestic tourist season … as it continues to grapple with the deadly coronavirus pandemic … the world’s third-highest number of infections […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Why the World Worries About Russia’s Natural Gas Pipeline” – Bloomberg/ Anna Shiryaevskaya, Dina Khrennikova
“A … natural gas pipeline being built under the Baltic Sea from Russia … to the German coast is shaking up geopolitics. Nord Stream 2 … worries … bypassed countries in Eastern Europe … fear[ing the loss of] transit fees … [while also] adding to friction with the U.S., which argues the link would give the Kremlin new leverage over […]
» Read moreRussia and the West
From: David C. Speedie <davidcspeedie@gmail.com> Date: Sun, Jun 28, 2020 Subject: Russia and the West To: <letters.editor@ft.com> (Financial Times) Philip Stephens [“Russia cannot afford a war with the west”, 26 June] contains some home truths about Russia under Vladimir Putin, but comes significantly short of the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. To focus on but a few illustrations: […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia cannot afford another 15 years at war with the west” – Financial Times/ Philip Stephens
“Vladimir Putin should brush off the cold war cobwebs in pursuit of a hard-headed look at national interests.” “… Putin is proposing … the option of another 15 years in office. He could … continu[e] to shake his fist at the west. Alternatively, he could brush away the cobwebs of the cold war and begin to recognise the challenge to […]
» Read moreRUSSIALINK: “Cancellation of EU restrictions against Russia unlikely in near future – Russian diplomat” – Interfax
Moscow is not discussing anti-Russian restrictions with the European Union, Director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s European Cooperation Department Nikolai Kobrinets said […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Russia’s New Nuclear Doctrine: Don’t Mess With Us – But Let’s Talk” – World Politics Review/ Richard Weitz
“… Why did Russia decide to publish its deterrence policy now? In part, it could be to dispel alleged Western misperceptions about when Russia might use nuclear weapons, specifically the Pentagon’s assessment that Moscow would threaten to use nuclear weapons – or actually do so – to intimidate an adversary into yielding in a major crisis. Previously referred to […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Senators to Announce Sanctions Bill on Russia’s Nord Stream 2 Gas Pipeline” – Reuters
“U.S. senators [reportedly] will announce a bill this week expanding sanctions on … [the] Gazprom-led Nord Stream 2 project … [that] Washington says will make Europe too reliant on Russian gas. The Protecting Europe’s Energy Security Clarification Act[, spearheaded by Republican Senator … Ted Cruz[ and Democratic Senator] Jeanne Shaheen … follows legislation signed by … Trump last year …. […]
» Read morePoll: Majority of Young Russians Distrust NATO, Don’t Consider Russia a European Country
(Russia Matters – russiamatters.org – Thomas Schaffner, Angelina Flood – May 5, 2020) A majority of young Russians distrust NATO more than any other organization and disagree that Russia is a European country, according to a recent poll conducted by Russia’s independent Levada Center and Germany’s Friedrich Ebert Foundation. These organizations’ research on the opinions of Russia’s “Generation Z” (aged […]
» Read moreReplacing ‘The Last of the Offended’ – Generational Change at the Russian Foreign Ministry
(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, April 25, 2020) The Moscow Carnegie Center has issued a podcast devoted to the discussion of generational change at the Russian Foreign Ministry and to what the rising generations, those in their 30s and 40s as well as those in their 20s are likely to bring to the table when they assume […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “Moscow’s coronavirus offensive; As the epidemic ravages Europe, the Kremlin has dialed up the disinformation and propaganda” – Politico.eu/ Hannah Roberts
“As the coronavirus pandemic spreads, Russia appears to be observing the adage that you should never let a good crisis go to waste. Seeking to capitalize on the chaos and promote its own soft power, the Kremlin has taken Beijing’s lead and started love-bombing struggling nations with medical aid, and stepping up its efforts to broadcast propaganda and sow disinformation […]
» Read moreJRL NEWSWATCH: “NATO enlargement: evaluating its consequences in Russia” – International Politics/ Kimberly Marten
“… There is no question that Russia – its leaders, expert analysts, and public – reacted negatively to NATO enlargement right from the start. … But …. Russia’s unhappiness is overdetermined, and there is no evidence that if NATO enlargement had been avoided, delayed, or altered (while nothing else changed), that Russia could have been reconciled to the idea of […]
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