On May17, 2016 the
Latvian Institute of International Affairs
organized an annual Riga Dialogue. The event was supported by the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI), European Leadership Network (ELN), the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and German Marshal Fund’s Black Sea Trust for Regional Cooperation. The title of this year’s expert round table was “Riga Dialogue 2016: Building Bridges for Euro-Atlantic Security.”
The Russian International Affairs...
It is necessary to realize who makes decisions and how
In the Cold War period the interest in military-political predictability coexisted with tough confrontation. The current situation is much more dangerous.
Relations between Russia and the West have become more dangerous than during the Soviet-US confrontation. Deterrence is now accompanied by the loss of institutions and a clear understanding of mutual interests and intentions. Communication and dialogue were the previous approach to settling ...
...
Regulars of the MSC remember President Putin’s famous Munich Speech of 2007 very well. Observers would then often refer to the speech as one manifesting a strategic turn in Russia’s foreign policy and a challenge to the United States and the West. I believe this interpretation of the Munich Speech to be deeply flawed. Nine years ago the President was trying to warn Russia’s partners of where we can find ourselves if we disregard fundamental norms of international law, rely on unilateral ...
... may be controversial, particularly in light of Russian behaviour in Ukraine. But the seriousness of the challenges facing the West, not least of which is Syria, demonstrates that a way forward must be found. What officials across Europe, particularly those ... ... Russia outright ought to consider the case of Iran. The Iranian nuclear deal is a significant achievement towards regional and international security, and it would not have been possible without support from the Russians. Ignoring the potential of cooperation ...
... the world.
The Use of Nuclear Weapons is Real, but How Real?
The report is based on a survey of leading researchers at U.S., British, German and Russian think tanks. The authors cite differing and sometimes opposite assessments made by the Russian and Western sides. But, as a rule, they cite Russian and foreign research and publications and not the actual results of the survey. The indiscriminate lumping together of the results of the poll and the analysis carried out by Robert Berls and Leon Ratz ...
... racing ahead of ourselves.
I’d also like to share my view of the situation in Europe and make some suggestions about possible areas for joint work.
The crisis in relations between Europe and Russia, or, more precisely, between Russia and the West, is unprecedented since the Cold War.
The way I see it, trading sanctions is equivalent to putting up a new iron curtain between us. But it was predominantly an ideological curtain during the Cold War, and it fell rather easily when the Berlin Wall ...
Interview with Daniel Hamilton, Executive Director, Center for Transatlantic Relations, John Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies
On October 20, 2015 RIAC held a meeting with foreign experts on “Russian and Western Views on Conflict Resolution and Security Challenges”. Not surprisingly, two most discussed and difficult topics were Ukraine and Syria. These conflicts are unresolved and there is high probability they will remain so for quite some time....
... International Affairs, Reinhard Krumm of
Friedrich Ebert Foundation
, and Lukasz Kulesa of European Leadership Network.
The discussants came to a conclusion that the Ukraine situation has generated a massive crisis of confidence between Russia and the West, unseen in scale since the Cold War. As a result, Europe is divided into two camps eager to erect varied barriers to fence off from each other.
However, it seems erroneous to insist that the Russia-West freeze has grown directly out of the Ukraine ...
