Section: iPolitics (Canada)
Putin and the politics of isolation
A quarter century ago, as the Soviet Union lurched toward dissolution, one of the people chronicling its fall was Russian journalist Artyom Borovik. His television show Vzglyad — which mocked Mikhail Gorbachev’s government — was watched by as many as 100 million people a week. Fluent in English — the result of a childhood spent in New York...
A good man in bad times: Remembering Boris Nemtsov
For those who knew him, the photo of Boris Nemtsov dead on the Moscow Bridge, just yards from the Kremlin walls, is heartbreaking. For Russians who remember the heady days of the early 1990s when anything seemed possible — days which Nemtsov once symbolized as much as any single public figure could — it would be a harsh reminder of how dark and...
A murder in Moscow — and a climate of fear
Russian President Vladimir Putin wants the public to believe he doesn’t benefit from the death of Boris Nemtsov, and some of the slain politician’s anti-Kremlin allies seem inclined to agree. Putin has used this propaganda line before, however, and there’s no reason to believe it now. Nemtsov’s murder — regardless of who...
On the edge of peace — or catastrophe — in Ukraine
Unless Russia and the rebels it backs in eastern Ukraine find Mariupol an irresistible strategic target — in which case all bets are off, again — the Minsk II ceasefire and peace deal Angela Merkel brokered appears to have survived the battle of Debaltseve and may be taking hold. This tragic Slavic civil war has killed thousands and condemned...
More Ukraine sanctions possible if ceasefire not respected, says Nicholson
PARIS – Foreign Affairs Minister Rob Nicholson says Canada may impose more sanctions on Russia if it continues to violate the ceasefire with Ukraine. Nicholson blames Russian President Vladimir Putin for flare-ups that have persisted since France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine negotiated the Minsk II agreement last month aimed at ending hostility...
How to make NATO matter again
On 5 March, 1946 Winston Churchill gave his famous “Sinews of Peace” speech at Fulton, Missouri, in which he warned of an “iron curtain” descending across Europe. Less well known is this passage, in which Churchill talked strategy: “What, then, is the overall strategy that we should inscribe today? It is nothing less than the safety and welfare,...
Europe doesn’t seem very worried about Putin
For all the alarmist rhetoric about Russian barbarians at the gate, NATO countries are reluctant to put their money where their mouth is. Only the countries closest to Russia’s borders are increasing their military spending this year, while other, bigger ones are making cuts. Regardless of what their leaders say about Vladimir Putin, they...
Kenney: Canada could join U.S.-led training mission in Ukraine
Canada is considering the idea of joining a U.S.-led mission to train Ukrainian soldiers. Defence Minister Jason Kenney says the Harper government is “certainly open to it,” but emphasized no decision has been made as the federal cabinet considers ways it can be helpful beyond the recent shipments of non-lethal military equipment. Britain...
Former ambassadors try their hand at second-guessing Putin
A dusty movement pattern analysis study by the Pentagon speculated that he has Asperger’s syndrome. A committee report this week from the British House of Lords excoriated Foreign Office diplomats for not reading his mind more efficiently. Many dollars and countless hours have been spent trying to answer the question: What is going on in...
Harper announces further sanctions against Russia
Canada says it’s intensifying economic sanctions against Russian individuals and companies in response to the tense situation in eastern Ukraine. Prime Minister Stephen Harper says the move is being made in co-ordination with Canada’s partners in Europe and the United States in response to what he says is Russia’s backing of...
