By Elkhan Nuriyev, PhD, Eastern Europe-Global Area (EEGA) fellow at Leipzig University

For Russia, China’s Belt and Road Initiative is less of a threat than an opportunity. Moscow is receptive to the BRI’s ability to help create a multipolar world as it bolsters China’s global stance to counterbalance American hegemony. The Kremlin also views the BRI as a means to attract Chinese investment and foster renewed Russian influence over the European Union’s eastern zone. One of the important buckles of the Silk Road Economic Belt – the overland component of China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) – is the Eastern Partnership (EaP) region, which represents an essential link between Asia and Europe. Developing this stage means enhancing commercial relations with six partner countries and an infusion of investment funds in several emerging-market economies. READ MORE

• September 23, 2020

Russia and Turkey have suspended joint patrols of the M4 highway in Syria for security reasons and will resume them once the situation there calms down, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in comments published on Monday.

• September 21, 2020

Ukraine’s foreign minister warned Russia on Friday against taking steps that undermine may undermine Belarus’ sovereignty and destabilise the region, while Britain called for sanctions on those in Belarus responsible for the “fraudulent elections”.

• September 18, 2020

Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya demanded on Friday an international mission to document what she called “atrocities” during crackdowns on anti-government protests, but said she was ready for talks to end weeks of violence.

• September 18, 2020

The Human Rights Council agreed to a resolution submitted by the European Union to launch closer U.N. monitoring of alleged rights violations in Belarus, despite multiple attempts by Russia to water it down.

• September 18, 2020

By Benyamin Poghosyan, PhD, Chairman, Center for Political and Economic Strategic Studies

Iran and Turkey have a long history of rivalry in the Middle East. As two key regional powers, they were vying for influence and seeking to expand their spheres of influence. After WWII both Iran and Turkey had an anti-Soviet attitude and participated in the Central Treaty Organization with the key goal to contain the Soviet Union. The Cold War has halted bilateral competition, while the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran has significantly changed the regional balance of power. READ MORE

• September 12, 2020

By Eugene Kogan, Tbilisi-based defence and security expert

While Russia is certainly viewed by Beijing as a reliable economic and trade partner with its oil, gas and arms exports to China, the Chinese do certainly not overemphasise this relationship. Instead, China sees Russia as a waning power with its vast territories, supported by armed forces and nuclear weapons, while at the same time prone to endemic corruption and unable to pursue meaningful economic, political and social reforms. READ MORE

• September 12, 2020

The emergency authorisation of COVID-19 vaccines requires a “great deal of seriousness and reflection”, the World Health Organization said on Monday after the United States announced it was considering fast-tracking candidate drugs.

• August 31, 2020