Russia

UN Security Council
Foreign affairs

Russia blocked attempt to ensure justice for MH17 victim families, Lithuanian diplomat says

July 30, 2015 BNS 0

By vetoing on Wednesday a UN Security Council resolution on setting up a tribunal for those responsible for the Malaysian plane MH17 tragedy, Russia blocked the way for ensuring justice for the families of the victims, Dainius Baublys, a minister counselor at Lithuania’s Permanent Mission to the UN, says. […]

MH17 crash site
Opinion

Opinion: Will Russia escape responsibility for MH17 crash?

July 30, 2015 Ramunas Bogdanas 0

Since the moment news broke about a downed passenger plane in eastern Ukraine, Russia has adopted a pose of aggressive defensiveness, although no one was making any accusations against it. Officially, the Kremlin maintains it is not a party to the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine and can, at most, act as a mediator between Kiev and the separatists. No one officially disputes that, it is as self-appointed mediator that Russia took part in the Minsk peace talks. […]

Uncategorized

Kazakhstan follows Russia’s lead in banning Baltic imports

July 29, 2015 ELTA EN 0

The Veterinary Supervision Authority of Kazakhstan has decided to introduce temporary restrictions on imports of Estonian and Latvian fish products, including canned fish, following the lead of Russia, Public Broadcasting reports. […]

No Picture
Opinion

Opinion: Information security – new challenges and Georgia

July 28, 2015 Levan Avalishvili 0

By one of its definitions, hybrid war involves classical military actions as well as undermining activities, energy, economic and finance warfare and, most importantly, information warfare. This is the kind of hybrid war that Russian Federation is waging against Ukraine. However, in one of his articles, the Russian expert, Andrey Ilarionov mentioned, that rather from being just a conflict between two countries, the war between Russia and Ukraine is a full-scale confrontation between the West and Russia. Unfortunately, Georgia found itself on the front line of this fierce confrontation between civilizations and has hence become one of the hotspots of information warfare. […]

Heidi Tagliavini
Opinion

Opinion: Spark of hope that Russia’s aggression will not pass this time

July 28, 2015 Ramunas Bogdanas 0

The German daily Berliner Zeitung was the first one to report about the resignation of Ambassador Heidi Tagliavini as OSCE special envoy in Ukraine and OSCE representative at the Minsk peace talks. This lady made her name in political and diplomatic quarters when the international commission she led published a report on the 2008 Georgian-Russian war. Her departure gives one hope that the conflict between Ukraine and Russia will not be given a Tagliavini treatment. […]

US President Barack Obama and Lithuania's Dalia Grybauskaitė
Foreign affairs

Why Lithuania is bound to be pro-American

July 27, 2015 DELFI EN 0

There was a time right after World War Two when Lithuanians believed that the United States of America would swoop into a Soviet-occupied country and drive the Soviets away. These hopes were rather baseless, yet the USA did stand by its policy not to recognise the annexation of the Baltic states. The start of this policy is believed to be July 23rd, 1940, with the declaration to this effect by US State Secretary Sumner Welles. […]

Potsdam Conference
Opinion

Opinion: Potsdam Conference and Russia’s crooked-mirror politics in Kaliningrad

July 25, 2015 Dr. Stasys Backaitis 0

Most of the time history can’t be put to bed even though agreements to end wars have been concluded, victors have drawn new boundary lines, promises made, but they soon get either forgotten or swept under the rug, as if they weren’t there. The story of the northern part of former East Prussia (now known as the Kaliningrad exclave) is a good example of a conveniently ignored agreement made at the 1945 Potsdam conference to resolve the fate of the territory at a later peace treaty with Germany. […]