When a Russian-led military force intervened earlier this month, it did more than help Kazakh President Qasym-Johart Toqayev restore and strengthen his grip on power following days of protest and violent clashes with security forces. The intervention brought to the fore a brewing competition for spheres of influence in Eurasia …

Freedom of religion and belief and interlinked human rights are under increasing threat in Kyrgyzstan. Forum 18’s survey analysis documents: increasing “legal” restrictions on the freedom of religion and belief; Ahmadi Muslims being prevented from meeting since 2011, and refusal to allow the Falun Gong spiritual movement to exist; state …

If Vladimir Putin orders the Russian army to move more deeply into Ukraine, that Russian force would likely defeat the Ukrainian army and annex the Donbass but it couldn’t occupy Ukraine, possibly the most anti-Russian country on earth, or improve Russia’s position there or elsewhere, Mikhail Pogrebinsky says. Indeed, such …