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Aid pledges to Ukraine collapse
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 08 Dec 2023

On December 7 the Kiel Institute's Ukraine aid tracker published data that found that pledges of aim to Ukraine have fallen to their lowest ever level. Military, humanitarian and financial aid pledged to Ukraine declined 87% in August to October 2023 (EUR 2.1 billion) compared to August and Octob...

Russia sets March 17 for presidential election
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 08 Dec 2023

On December 7 the Russian Federal Council approved the date for 2024. Anti-corruption campaigner Alexey Navalny said from jail people should vote for anyone but Putin. Navalny said that the election would be rigged but people should vote nonetheless. He said it is a referendum on the war. A ''Rus...

Ukraine claims it killed traitor politician
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 07 Dec 2023

On December 6 Kyiv said that the former deputy in the Ukrainian Parliament who defected to Russia was shot dead by its operative outside Moscow. Ilya Kyva had been tried in absentia in a Ukrainian court for high treason and sentenced to 14 years in prison. Kyva had repeatedly gone on Russian TV a...

Putin to visit Saudi Arabia and the UAE
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 05 Dec 2023

On December 4 the Kremlin announced the visit, which will take place this week. OPEC+ agreed on November 30 to cut output by 2.2 million barrels a day. Russia is a member of OPEC+. Markets did not react as expected because many doubt that the cuts will be implemented in full. Prices have fallen s...

Belarus' president in China
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 05 Dec 2023

On December 4 Lukashenko arrived in Beijing and met with President Xi. China is one of the very few countries willing to receive him since the disputed 2020 election. Lukashenko likes to prove that he has friends who are not just in Russia. This is the second time Xi has met Lukashenko this year ...

Russia expanding military 15%
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 02 Dec 2023

On December 1 Putin signed a presidential decree about this saying the expansion was needed due to the threat from Ukraine and NATO's ''aggressive activity'' seeking more members. The decree says there shall be no amendments to the draft system. There was a huge draft in 2022 of men who had alrea...

Essential CIS Politics: December 2023
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · Report · 01 Dec 2023

* The war in Ukraine has slowed to a near stalemate. * Western arms shipments to Ukraine are decreasing. * Western leaders visit Kyiv but show little progress on EU accession. * Kazakhstan hosted the presidents of France and Russia.

Russia bans international LGBT movement
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 01 Dec 2023

On November 30 the Supreme Court ruled that the gay rights movement is extremist and therefore illegal. Involvement in such an organization can lead to 6 years in jail. The Orthodox Church welcomed the Supreme Court's judgement.  Any form of advocacy for gay rights is now illegal. Encouragement o...

Hungary will block talks on Ukrainian EU membership
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 01 Dec 2023

On November 30 the Hungarian Prime Minister's office stated that it would be wrong to open such talks while Ukraine is engaged in a full-scale war. Hungary is a neighbor of Ukraine. There is an indigenous Hungarian minority in Ukraine. Hungary is more pro-Russian than most EU states and has secur...

Russia attends OSCE
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 30 Nov 2023

On November 29 the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) held its summit in North Macedonia. It was a success for Russia that it was able to send its delegation headed by its foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov.  Some members of the OSCE were so unhappy about Russian attendance t...

Families of Russian soldiers ask for them to get leave
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 29 Nov 2023

On November 27 an organization of soldiers' families called "Put Domoi" (''The Way Home'') published a petition asking for soldiers in Ukraine to be given a vacation. Some relatives have put anti-mobilization stickers on their automobiles. The campaign is for the soldiers to be given a break. It ...

Western nations suspect Turkey of conniving at sanctions busting
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 28 Nov 2023

On November 27 The Financial Times reported that Turkey's sale of militarily applicable goods to Russia has shot up since 2022. There are 45 items that are dual use. They are sold to Russia directly or indirectly. The explanation is that they have a civilian use as well as a military one. The ite...

Dozens of Russian drones attack Kyiv
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 25 Nov 2023

On the night of November 24 Russia launched its largest ever air attack on Kyiv. Ukraine said that it shot down 71 drones, which was almost all of them. They were said to be Shahed drones, which are Iranian designed. However, it is thought that Russia now has its own factory to make Shaheds. Ukra...

Growing number of Russians and Ukrainians want to end the war
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 24 Nov 2023

On November 15 an organization called "Russian Field" carried out an opinion poll and showed that 49% of people wanted to negotiate an end to the war and 39% wanted to fight on. These figures have moved considerably in favor of peace talks since June 2023. The November 2023 poll also showed growi...

Putin says he is open to peace talks
RUSSIA / FSU POLITICS · In Brief · 23 Nov 2023

On November 22 Putin addressed the G20 Summit by videolink. He said that everyone needed to consider ways to end the war, which he called "tragic". He blamed Ukraine for refusing peace talks. It is true that since mid 2022 Ukraine has refused to talk until Russia withdraws from Ukraine, including...

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