Eastern Europe / Features
OIES expert warns against gradual phase-out of Russian gas
EU efforts to gradually reduce Russian gas imports over time will only bolster Moscow’s revenues by driving prices upwards, Mike Fulwood, a senior fellow at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies (OIES), warned in a paper.
What are Russian troops still doing in Belarus?
While the front line has moved to Eastern and Southern Ukraine, Russian troops still remain in Belarus. The question is, what are they still doing there? Moreover, what are the objectives of Lukashenko's revived dialogue initiatives with the West?
The Belarusian regime's "crypto friendliness"
The EU's latest sanctions package makes it harder for Russian and Belarusian actors to evade sanctions using cryptocurrencies. In light of this, it's also important to remember what the Belarusian regime's "crypto friendliness" is actually based on.
Layoffs, relocation, terminated projects and the brain drain in Russia’s IT sector
In mid-March, Hiroshi Makino, a venture capitalist, made the difficult choice to relocate his family and business from St Petersburg, Russia back to his home country of Japan.
RUmainers: the western companies still in Russia
Alongside hard-hitting sanctions, over 750 multinationals are voluntarily reducing operations in Russia. Those which remain are finding their decision increasingly difficult to justify, dealing with reputational damage and disrupted supply chains.
Is Ukraine’s heroic resistance on borrowed time?
Ukraine is rapidly depleting its Soviet era weapons stockpiles as well as “burning through a week’s worth of anti-tank munitions every day”, according to Bloomberg.
Moscow's race against time to divert energy exports from Europe to Asia
Europe’s unprecedented push to sever all energy ties with Russia has left Moscow scrambling to re-orientate its vast oil, gas and coal exports to Asian markets. But achieving such a monumental feat would likely take years and cost billions.
DON: Russia's Black Sea flagship Moskva sunk – the anatomy of a missile strike
On April 16 Moscow confirmed that its Black Sea flagship Moskva had sunk after the survivors of her crew of 500 men had abandoned ship. It is the biggest naval loss to enemy action since WWII and a major blow to Russia’s military prestige.
The EU’s sixth package of sanctions will target Russian oil exports to Europe
European officials are drafting plans for an embargo on Russian oil products, the most contested measure yet to punish Russia for its invasion of Ukraine and a move long resisted because of its big costs for Germany.
Kazakhstan bolsters defences amid Russian invasion of Ukraine
In its current state, Kazakhstan’s army is in little condition to discourage sabre-rattling from the north.
DATACRUNCH: Sanctions by the numbers – gas
Voices are calling very loudly for the EU to shut off deliveries of Russian gas immediately. Since the start of the conflict in Ukraine, Germany has paid Russia some €9bn a week for gas imports that critics say is being used to fund the Putin war.
DATACRUNCH: Sanctions by numbers – grain
Grain has not been included in the sanctions the West has imposed on Russia, and is very unlikely to be, as so many countries rely on the commodity. But Russia is threatening to restrict exports of grain and fertiliser for exactly this reason.
Who will lead Russia’s Liberal Democratic Party after Zhirinovsky’s death?
Following the death of ultranationalist firebrand Zhirinovsky, his LDPR party may get a new leader for the first time in 30 years. Leonid Slutsky is the most likely candidate, but rumours say that the party may not have any future in the Duma.
EU moves closer to full Russia embargo in fifth sanctions package
The EU's fifth package of sanctions targets Russian imports from practically all remaining sectors. The one notable exception is gas, which is still welcome at European ports and on European roads.
DATACRUNCH: Sanctions by the numbers – oil
Russia dominates Europe’s oil supplies, accounting for 25% of all oil deliveries. Most of Europe wants to diversify away from Russian oil, but adding to the difficulties is that much of this oil is delivered not by ship but the Druzhba pipelines.
DATACRUNCH: Sanctions in numbers – coal
Coal was included in the EU’s fifth package of sanctions, the first time that energy has been targeted by the tough sanction regime being imposed on Russia. Coal only makes up 3% of EU imports, but Russia continues to be the major supplier.
DATACRUNCH: Sanctions by numbers – UN voting
Russia has been condemned for its attack on Ukraine at two votes in the UN but the voting patterns shed some light on who Russia's friends are and those that are sitting on the fence
Poland pushing hard to end oil dependency on Russia
Warsaw has been accused of dragging its feet about ending Russian oil imports, while calling for an urgent EU-wide embargo at the same time.
Minsk switches its rhetoric in fear of a domestic political revival
Lukashenko has demanded that Belarus is granted a place at Russia's and Ukraine's peace negotiations. Minsk is more and more sidestepping its previous war rhetoric against Ukraine, and has stopped calling Russia's invasion a "special operation".
Meduza releases critical video proving civilians killed in Bucha while Russian troops were stationed in the city
Independent Russian publication Meduza has obtained files containing high-quality videos depicting the southern districts of the city of Bucha that show the dead bodies in the street while Russian troops still occupied the Kyivian suburb.
