The scenes of the 2022 Winter Olympics’ opening ceremony in Beijing stuck out as a muted affair compared to the pomp and grandeur of the Summer Olympics fourteen years ago. While the 2008 Olympics symbolized China’s ascent onto the world stage among the world’s great powers, the 2022 Winter Olympics instead highlight China’s increasing isolation […]
Tag: Putin
Russia’s Losing Fight Against the Coronavirus
Much of the world is facing the beginnings of a post-pandemic world. While countries are starting to return to a semblance of normalcy given high vaccination rates, Russia is going into lockdown. The 25th of October marked a new somber milestone—what Russians refer to as “анти-рекорд” (anti-record)—of 37,930 cases in 24 hours. The day also […]
Russian Media Experienced Unprecedented Crackdown Ahead of Parliamentary Elections
Over the past few months, many organisations in Russia have been faced with new pressures from the government which severely limit their ability to function. This came at a time when United Russia — the political party most loyal to Putin — sought to secure a majority in the Duma, the lower house of the […]
Trauma Such as This in Peacetime: The Story of the 2020 Belarusian Protests
“I saw bruises that covered their entire bodies…I was particularly struck by a bruise on the face of one of the patients. It had the shape of a boot sole. The patient had been kicked in the face….I never could have imagined that I would see trauma such as this in peacetime.” These are the […]
Gangs and Gulags: How Vladimir Putin Utilizes Organized Crime to Power his Mafia State
“I’m sorry, the Russian Mafia is after me.” While this statement sounds like it’s straight out of a 1960s Bond movie, it was actually uttered by disgraced NFL defensive lineman Justin Bannan on October 16th after non-fatally shooting a woman in a building he partly owned. The validity of Bannon’s claim is for prosecutors to […]
Papa Putin and Mother Russia: The Historical and Political Implications of Domestic Violence in Russia
In Russia, nearly 40 women die every day due to domestic violence. This rate is around three per day in the United States. The women that survive are too often left with scars, burns, or permanent disabilities, and are subject to continued threats or violence. Despite this, in February of 2017, Russia’s legislature overwhelmingly passed […]
Uncle Sam Wants Your Rubles
Good morning, Americans. Or shall I say, доброе утро! Doesn’t it make you feel warm and fuzzy inside to know that since Donald Trump was elected President on November 8, five dozen Russian billionaires have seen their net worths skyrocket by a total of 27 billion dollars? One of these billionaires, an aluminum tycoon […]
Putin’s New Plaything
Vladimir Putin is like a cat. People don’t know what he’s thinking, and the fact that he is unpredictable makes him an enigma. However, the stakes are too high to keep misinterpreting Putin’s intentions. Russia’s annexation of Crimea in Ukraine in 2014 and its recent increase in military aid to Syria demonstrate that Putin is […]
Northwest Passage
With the relentless pace at which global climate change has marched forward, the northern bastions of ice have been reduced to mere skeletons, the ice melt rapidly accelerating since the 1970s.These extensive topological shifts in the Arctic have fueled a renewed political debate over the resource rich lands and potential trade routes of the North. […]
Hasty Military Maneuvers
The global community continues to hear about the escalating conflict between Russia and Ukraine. At the NATO summit in Wales on September 5th, Prime Minister Poroshenko called on NATO nations to come to the defense of Ukraine in light of the latest failed cease–fire. While the conflict between the two countries is becoming increasingly more […]