Putin’s Russia: Violence, Power and Another 12 Years
Putin can remain in office until 2036, when he will turn 84, but he will preside over a state with fewer people and dwindling resources.
Opinion – The Rationale of Russia’s ‘Special Military Operation’ in Ukraine
Russia seeks to depopulate and destroy the entity that since 1991 has existed as the independent Ukrainian state. Only deeply flawed narratives can describe this situation otherwise.
Opinion – Russia’s Choices in Ukraine
After the conquest of the Donbas it would make sense to seek an armistice, but Russia seems blinded by its own propaganda and buoyed by its gains – costly as they have been.
Russia’s War Goals in Ukraine
There is no obvious end point or exit point for Putin as his goal is to win and occupy a vast territory and to be recognized as a victorious conqueror that has restored the glory of Russia.
Opinion – Merkel Talks with Lukashenka: A Positive or Negative Step?
If change is to come in Belarus, it requires interventions from external sources, the most likely of which is Russia – however unlikely that may appear.
Opinion – Mikhail Gorbachev: Cold War Hero or the Man Who Lost the Empire?
The Soviet Union ended quietly under Gorbachev, a man who sought peaceful change but lacked the means to preserve the Soviet state.
Opinion – Lukashenka’s Future in Belarus
For Putin, Lukashenka has become an irritant – reliably pro-Russian but a difficult partner who has probably outlived his usefulness.
The Transformation of Political Life in Belarus
Despite the arrest of hundreds of people, including two of the main opposition candidates, will Europe’s last dictator, Aliaksandr Lukashenka, fall in the upcoming election?
Meeting With the Opposition in Belarus
This chapter describes the author’s travel, stories and experiences meeting with Belarusian political opposition before and after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Understanding Ukraine and Belarus: Advancing My Career
This chapter describes the author’s experiences becoming a professor in Canada during the 1980s and 1990s, and during the Soviet “putsch” in August 1991.
