Showing 1 - 10 of 12
Putin lacks the clout to cut isles deal with Abe
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 24/01/2019
» The window of opportunity for Russia and Japan to officially end World War II with a peace treaty narrowed again after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to Moscow on Tuesday failed to end in a breakthrough. There's still time for Mr Abe to secure his legacy, but a lot depends on President Vladimir Putin's increasingly shaky domestic standing.
The year of the woeful world leaders
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 28/12/2018
» The dictionaries have decided on their 2018 words of the year. Oxford picked "toxic". Merriam-Webster went for "justice". Collins chose "single-use". However, I'd zero in on "misgovernment". Surely, 2018 saw a number of countries misruled by the worst crop of world leaders in recent memory.
Merkel tries not to go out with a bang
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 16/11/2018
» It could have been a call for decisive action by a leader no longer tethered by domestic politics. But German Chancellor Angela Merkel's appearance at the European Parliament on Tuesday was nothing of the sort: Ms Merkel unbound is the same cautious, gradualist Merkel.
Secretive Russian billionaire vents to US conservatives
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 13/03/2018
» It's not every day that a Russian billionaire submits a op-ed piece to the Daily Caller, the conservative US website. When the billionaire in question is as media-shy as Oleg Deripaska, something extraordinary is going on. As the unfortunate recipient of an oversized role in the "Trump-Russia" scandal, he has had enough and is not quite sure how to defend himself.
The new Saudi Arabian heir is a dangerous man
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 23/06/2017
» The abrupt change in Saudi Arabia's line of royal succession will probably help maintain the House of Saud's sway over its 31 million people, 70% of whom are under 30. It is, however, a dangerous move in the context of a new Big Game unfolding in the Middle East, which involves the US, Russia and local players.
Russia has no reason to undermine Qatar
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 09/06/2017
» The ubiquitous "Russian hackers" are now accused of providing the spark for a diplomatic fire between Saudi Arabia and Qatar. While the facts in the case remain in the shadows, it's hard to understand why it would be in Russia's interest to undermine Qatar.
The key to tackling North Korea is Vladimir Putin
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 19/05/2017
» The idea of a grand bargain between the United States and Russia is less popular in Washington than ever before. And yet one of the biggest foreign policy problems for the US -- that of North Korea -- cannot be resolved without Russia's participation. In recent years, Russian President Vladimir Putin has made sure to rebuild a close relationship with North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, and it's no longer enough to talk to China to mitigate the Stalinist state's aggressiveness.
A new Russia policy requires Exxon CEO's skills
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 14/12/2016
» If Donald Trump chooses Exxon Mobil Chief Executive Officer Rex Tillerson as his secretary of state, it will be proof that his administration will take a new approach to US policy toward Russia, as he hinted during the campaign. The dismay about that shift in the expert and intelligence community may be a good sign: The same experts and spies have led the Obama administration into a series of missteps that have embarrassed the US and helped advance President Vladimir Putin's agenda.
Merkel, Juncker fight the dreamers
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 08/07/2016
» It is increasingly clear that the European Union (EU) is about to waste the crisis brought on by the UK's withdrawal vote. The leaders of the nation states have no stomach for any meaningful reform of EU institutions, the bureaucrats in Brussels are forced to take a back seat, and federalist dreamers are unceremoniously shunted aside.
World-class experts in atonement
News, Leonid Bershidsky, Published on 07/06/2016
» The German parliament's recognition of the 1915 genocide of Armenians in Turkey has predictably angered the Turkish government, which has even recalled its ambassador from Berlin. But more importantly, it raised the question of what constitutes sufficient atonement for the past sins of entire nations.