Belarus is the world’s strangest state right now
The new epicentre of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe, Belarus is seeing an unprecedented wave of civic participation amid the upcoming presidential election.
May 28, 2020 - Yahor Azarkevich
May 28, 2020 - Yahor Azarkevich
Elections in Belarus do not typically leave much room for surprise. In the fully-fledged autocracy that the country has become since the 1994 ascent to power of Alexander Lukashenka, no ballot has been left to chance. Instead, votes have followed an ever-more refined script that is aimed exclusively at affirming the rule of the country’s strongman and the vertical of power, on which his reign rests. This electoral parody, naturally, has been regularly decried as neither free nor fair by domestic and international monitors. And it has only been consequent that Western leaders and institutions have long denied the “elected” Belarusian leadership the recognition that comes with a democratic mandate.
September 28, 2016 - Joerg Forbrig
The consequences of Russia’s invasion are visible not only in Ukraine. The Kremlin has set off or exploited a series of crises that face most European countries.
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New thinking is needed in policies towards Russia, in whatever form it will take after the war.
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Ukraine’s suffering goes well beyond the front line.
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With Russia’s invasion of Ukraine we now see our western values under siege, whether we consciously recognise it or not.
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The invasion by Russian forces of Ukraine from the north, south and east – with the initial aim to take the capital Kyiv – has changed our region, and indeed our world, forever.
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The situation with Russian threats towards Ukraine once again illustrates the high level of instability in our region.
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Only a year ago we witnessed the second Nagorno-Karabakh war between Armenia and Azerbaijan. It took at least 5,000 lives and significantly shifted the geopolitics in the South Caucuses.
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This special issue aims to honour the plight of Belarusians whose democratic choice made in August 2020 was shamelessly snubbed by Alyaksandr Lukashenka.
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From the social, economic and political points of view, a lot of work still remains for this country. And this is why Ukraine’s story is incomplete.
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Our societies are more polarised than ever before, which makes them more susceptible to disinformation, untruth and conspiracy theories.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed limitations and weaknesses in nearly all countries around the world.
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Uncertainty, volatility and the relationship between Russia and the West.
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The Black Sea region is quickly becoming a geopolitical battleground which is gaining the interest of major powers, regional players and smaller countries – and the stakes are only getting higher.
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This issue is dedicated to the 10 year anniversary of the European Union’s Eastern Partnership as well as the 30 years since the 1989 revolutions in Central Europe.
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The consequences of the emerging multipolar world.
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This issue takes a special look at the role and responsibility of the public intellectual in Central and Eastern Europe today.
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In the eastern parts of the European continent, 1918 is remembered not only as the end of the First World War, but also saw the emergence of newly-independent states and the rise of geopolitical struggles which are felt until this day.
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It often seems, at least from the outside, that Belarus remains isolated from the West and very static in its transformation. Yet, despite its relative isolation, Belarus is indeed changing.
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The Summer 2018 issue of New Eastern Europe tackles the complexity of para-states in the post-Soviet space.
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