Ukraine, National Security

Russia plans airbase in Belarus

Russian president Vladimir Putin backed plans over the weekendto build a Russian military airbase in neighbouring Belarus, reports Reuters.Defense officials say the base will host Su-27 fighters. The plans are expectedto move ahead without difficulty. Russia has also boosted its military presencein Syria.

Crimea Tatars seek to block peninsula to protest Russianannexation

Accompanied by members of the Ukrainian ultra-nationalist PravySektor group, protesters from the Muslim Tatar community used concrete blocksto partially seal off the three roads linking mainland Ukraine to Crimea in anattempt to halt the delivery of goods.

Tatar leaders said they were aiming to block supplies to protestthe "numerous violations of their rights by Russian authorities". 

EU-Ukraine, Foreign Affairs

Migration summit, quotas this week

Their interior and justice ministers will,in Brussels on Tuesday (22 September), first try to agree on a EuropeanCommission proposal to relocate a further 120,000 people based on obligatoryquotas.  The opponents, mainly from central and eastern Europe, could beoutvoted by the big pro-quota bloc, which includes France and Germany.

 Politics

Russian opposition draws thousands to anti-Putin protest

Protesters denounced the Kremlin-controlled political systemthat allows Putin to stay in power and prevents the opposition from running inelections. They complained of political repression and official corruption.

Poroshenko speaks for amending Rada's protocol forquicker detainment of MPs breaking law

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has spoken in favor ofamending the protocol of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine to simplify the liftingof immunity and detainment, when MPs violate the law.

Russian Opposition Calls for Power Change in Moscow Rally

“The same people shouldn’t be in power since 1999,” Navalny saidin a statement on his website, last week. “These elections aren’t about thepercentage we got but our right to tell people the truth everywhere we want.”

Russia funds Moscow conference for US, EU and Ukraineseparatists

The Russian government has helped fund aconference in Moscow to bring together separatists from the United States andeastern Ukraine, despite cracking down on its own dissidents. Opposition to theUS and European Union was the factor unifying the
assortment of guests at the “Dialogue of nations: the right toself-determination and the construction of a multipolar world” conference atthe President hotel in downtown Moscow on Sunday.

Business and Economy

Ukraine central bank shutters Ferrexpo-linked bank

As if being in the iron ore business in Ukraine was not toughenough, Ferrexpo is now dealing with the fallout of a decision by Ukraine'scentral bank to declare its transactional bank in the country insolvent 

Publications, articles, press releases, statements &opinions

Movers and Shakers | 21 September 2015

Keep track of developments in the European institutions andpublic affairs with our movers and shakers column

Why Russia accepted the Mistral agreement byMichel Cabirol ,Samuel White (EuroActive)

Putin and Assad invite West to anti-ISalliance by ANDREW RETTMAN (EU Observer)

In war-torn Ukraine, a ghost town begins torebuild by Yulia Gorbunova(MSNBC)

The Pentagon is preparing new war plans fora Baltic battle against Russia by JULIA IOFFE (the Foreign Policy) 

EU- Delegation to Ukraine, European Commission

Extraordinary Justice and Home Affairs Council on therefugee crisis

EU Interior Ministers offered their support for thecomprehensive agenda the Commission put forth in May and September to addressthe refugee crisis. A first step forward as a Union on the refugee crisis hasbeen taken.