By solving a Russian domestic crisis, the Belarusian leader has effectively joined the ranks of Russian grandees vying for Putin’s favor by eliminating irritating problems that could distract the president from his high-stakes geopolitical machinations. The mutiny led by the Wagner mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin on the weekend has given …

The EU’s decision to grant Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine membership perspective signals a more strategic approach to enlargement. But an overhaul of the process is needed to enable staged accession and prevent a stalemate. Russia’s aggression against Ukraine has placed the EU’s policy toward its eastern neighbors firmly in the …

The Russian private military company Wagner Group, which made headlines over the weekend by starting to march on Moscow amid an apparent dispute with Russian President Vladimir Putin, has longstanding ties to Hong Kong, records show. Public domain information shows that its predecessor, the Slavonic Corps, was founded in the …

Amidst the ongoing stalemate in the Ukrainian war, a major internal conflict has erupted within Russia with the mutiny of the mercenary Wagner Group. On June 23, Wagner’s leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, took to social media to accuse the Russian Ministry of Defense of launching an attack on Wagner’s camp, resulting …

Wagner mercenary group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin has reportedly entered exile in Belarus following an aborted mutiny that challenged Russia’s military command, and rattled the Kremlin. But, despite the efforts of President Vladimir Putin and his administration to project an air of confidence and stability, the fallout from the Wagner rebellion …

Many analysts and politicians believe the greatest risk to the territorial integrity of the Russian Federation will come immediately after Vladimir Putin leaves the scene, Aleksandr Kynyev says; but that view is wrong: the real danger is likely to arise several years later if the transitional government misplays the situation. …

As the entire world watched in disbelief during the rapidly unfolding mutiny in Russia organized by Yevgeny Prigozhin and the Wagner Group on June 23 and 24, hardly anyone could imagine how its endgame would ultimately play out. In particular, the factor of Belarus seemed nowhere close to the conflict’s …

A Conversation With Stephen Kotkin Stephen Kotkin is a preeminent historian of Russia, a fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution and Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, and the author of an acclaimed three-volume biography of Joseph Stalin (the third volume is forthcoming). Executive Editor Justin Vogt spoke with him …

The League of Arab States welcomed President Bashar al-Assad to its May summit, reinstating Syria’s membership, which it had suspended in 2011. The regime may look to have shrugged off the international opprobrium it earned for its brutality in repressing its opponents. But has it? When Arab countries admitted Syria …

On 24 June, President Vladimir Putin faced his biggest challenge in over two decades at Russia’s helm: a mutiny by a mercenary group fighting alongside Russian forces in Ukraine. In this Q&A, Crisis Group experts explore the implications for Putin’s rule and Russian foreign policy. What happened? On 24 June, …