Post-“Election” Russia Sinks Deeper into War Quagmire

Posted by & filed under Regions and Powers, Security, Ukraine War

The official results from last week’s Russian presidential election were precisely what the Kremlin ordered, but they have hardly brought the incumbent Vladimir Putin much satisfaction.

Vladimir Putin meets with election campaign activists at Kremlin in Moscow, Russia on March 20,2024. (Photo by Sefa Karacan/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Falsifications in the results were so blatant that Putin’s desire to prove overwhelming public support for the continuation of his autocratic rule has remained unfulfilled. Instead of discipling the political elites, he may have inadvertently informed them about the limits of his control and the infirmness of his grasp on power (Meduza, March 20).

Despite extra-tight administration and security measures, several surprises have exposed fragilities in the seemingly solid system of Putin’s power.Read More

Presidential ‘Elections’ Cannot Restore Putin’s Authority

Posted by & filed under Governance, Ukraine War

This week, from March 15 to 17, Russia will hold presidential election. Canceling the elections would be entirely natural for the repressive autocratic regime that has matured in Moscow.

Vladimir Putin submitted documents to register as a self-nominated candidate for the Russian Federation presidential election. Photo: President of Russia/kremlin.ru

The government already has all the enforcement structures it needs to suppress protests. Putin could easily justify the move by arguing that Russia is a unique “state civilization” that does not need Western political models (Riddle, August 23, 2023; Valdai club, October 10, 2023).

Yet, millions of Russians will go to the polls — voluntarily or under duress — to partake in this symbolic ceremony, while millions more will cast their votes online (TASS, March 4).Read More

Fake Research Is Threatening Our Democracy

Posted by & filed under Research Politics

What will happen to public debate and our democracy if we can no longer trust research?

Fabricated ‘scientific publications’ could threaten the very foundations of our society.

Illustration: Getty images

It isn’t ‘fake news’ that scares me, it’s fake research. By this, I don’t mean plagiarism and the failure to provide correct citations, but rather completely fabricated ‘scientific publications’ that by their very nature and scale may threaten the foundations for society.Read More

Peacemaking for Ukraine: The Swiss Track, the Chinese Pretence, and the Antalya Diplomacy Forum

Posted by & filed under Peacebuilding, Ukraine War

Battles in the Donbas trenches and across the Black Sea waters keep raging as the belligerents persist with their strategies of attrition. Neither President Volodymyr Zelensky’s defiant presentation at the Munich Security Conference, nor President Vladimir Putin’s address to the Federal Assembly contained any indication of readiness to compromise.

Erdogan and Zelensky during a press conference with on March 08, 2024 in Istanbul. Photo: Chris McGrath/Getty Images

Notwithstanding this determination to keep the war going, three separate tracks for exploring the options for peace talks are showing new signs of activity.Read More

Facing Imbalances in Global Knowledge Co-creation

Posted by , , , , , , , , , and & filed under Migration

Global South-North asymmetries, or imbalances, in resources and access to mobility are often pervasive in international research, including research on peace, conflict, migration and development.

Research projects can be experienced as extractive in many contexts around the world.

Project photo from fieldwork in Hanoi. Photo: Karen Liao / MigrationRhythms project / PRIO

This means that the research process feels like it is taking something away from those involved, rather than benefiting them. This can even be the case when collaboration across unequal relationships has been carefully reflected upon by research teams.Read More

Russian Unity and Western Discord Converge in Putin’s Imagination

Posted by & filed under Regions and Powers, Security, Ukraine War

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s annual address to the Federal Assembly last Thursday was grander in length and style than his usual domineering performances.

Vladimir Putin is seen on a screen at a cinema in St. Petersburg that broadcasts him addressing the Federal Assembly. Photo: Artem Priakhin / SOPA Images / LightRocket via Getty Images

He did not attempt to persuade the audience of loyal bureaucrats that victory in Ukraine is near.

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What Has Peacekeeping Ever Done for Us?

Posted by and & filed under Peacebuilding

Are we overlooking positive synergetic effects of peacekeeping operations for peace and development?

UNIFIL soldiers guarding ‘the blue line’ between Lebanon and Israel, August 2023. Photo: Houssam Shbaro / Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

While UN peacekeeping operations have increasingly come into disrepute, studies underline that operations can prevent conflict re-escalation, limit violence against civilians, and promote settlement – even if not all missions are fully successful.Read More

Russian Society Disfigured and Degraded by the ‘Long War’

Posted by & filed under Regions and Powers, Ukraine War

Russians still do not call the full-scale invasion of Ukraine what it actually is — a war. Now in its third year, the war continues to be referred to in Russia by its awkward abbreviation SVO, short for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s so-called “special military operation.”

Citizens stroll along the city streets, passing by a woman beggar in St. Petersburg, Feb 2024. Photo: Artem Priakhin / SOPA Images / LightRocket via Getty Images

Russian war propaganda pushing this narrative is everywhere.

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Russia’s Post-Putin Future Becomes Darker

Posted by & filed under Regions and Powers, Security, Ukraine War

This year’s Munich Security Conference recently took place on February 16 but was soon overshadowed by other events, which is becoming a tradition for the annual conference. In early February 2022, most high-level participants did not believe a Russian attack on Ukraine was imminent. In 2023, many expected decisive success in Ukraine’s much-anticipated counteroffensive. This year, the primary dealings were the signing of the French-Ukrainian and German-Ukrainian security pacts, specifying Europe’s commitments to Ukraine (RBC.ru, February 16; NV.ua, February 16).

Flowers, candles, and a portrait of Alexei Navalny, are placed near the walls of the Russian Embassy in Warsaw during the rally dedicated to the second anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Russia into Ukraine. Photo: Volha Shukaila/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

The sudden death of Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny, however, overshadowed these ceremonies. Navalny’s wife, Yulia Navalnaya, held Russian President Vladimir Putin personally responsible in her address in Munich (Moscow times, February 16).

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Russian Economy Feels Bite of Attrition

Posted by & filed under Regions and Powers, Security, Ukraine War

On February 1, the European Council unanimously approved the 50 billion euro aid package to Ukraine. Although this package will not alter the course of the battles for Avdiivka or Kupyansk as it does not include funding for armor or ammunition, it will deliver a boost to Ukraine’s struggling economy.

Wartime destruction. Building damaged by a massive Russian missile strike in Kyiv, Ukraine, on February 7, 2024. Photo: Maxym Marusenko/NurPhoto via Getty Images

In a long war of attrition, economic performance has a decisive impact. Russia’s economy got a boost last year from the massive increase in military expenditures. However, even if this volume of funding is sustained this year, the economy’s limits of growth have already been reached.

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