russia

Success of Georgia Police Reform Is a Function of Sovereignty

Jamestown Foundation correspondent Giorgi Kvelashvili below discussesthe de-Sovietization of Georgia, its progress based on the work and recent writings of President Saakashvili. Though the unorthodox relationship with Russia has hindered the mechanisms of autonomy in the post-Soviet state, the boom we  begin to see with respect to police reform, a crucial element to ongoing civil [...]

Robert Amsterdam Speaks Out on Rule of Law in Russia

International attorney and Corporate Foreign Policy founder Robert Amsterdam took to the podium on Wednesday, February 3rd at the CATO Institute in Washington DC to discuss in brief the role of the ‘reset‘ button in contemporary U.S.-Russia relations and the precedent it sets by both besmirching rule of law at home and abroad and indeed [...]

Italy’s ENI Out of Iran

ENI SpA’s chief executive said yesterday that the Italian energy company will pull out of Iran after current contracts to develop two gas fields there run out, amidst international pressure to isolate the country over its highly controversial nuclear program.
Paolo Scaroni also said the company plans to raise around euro1.5 billion from selling off shares [...]

The Language of Human Rights

This article was first published in The Wall Street Journal.
Human rights are under attack, and language is the weapon. The very grammar of justice has fallen into the wrong hands, instrumentalized in the elaborate and sensational theaters of due process. A trial without any rights of defense is still called a “trial,” a conviction ordered [...]

Russian inroads to Latin America continue…

The Spanish newswire EFE is carrying a small story about how Russia has become the second-largest destination for exports from Uruguay after Brazil. From the Russia side of things, this will likely remain below the radar, but it is worth noting from a South American perspective for a few reasons.
One, following China’s ascent to being Brazil’s [...]

Sechin: Russia’s New Viktor Bout

Unbeknownst to many, Igor Sechin allegedly worked with the famous arms dealer Viktor Bout back in Mozambique in the 1980s?  As you probably already know and as RobertAmsterdam.com has documented, we have been monitoring orders for more Russian tanks from Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez while at the same time more and more FARC links to Caracas are surfacing.
It’s [...]

Confusing State and Nation

Robert Skidelsky has written an insightful article in RealClearWorld which takes a look at the recognition of South Ossetia and Abkhazia as newly independent nation states by Russia and Nicaragua, the polemics of confusing state and nation.  Please see below for an interesting excerpt.
The world’s population is about 6 billion. Suppose that it was divided [...]

After Obama Visit, Russia Resets to Default

By Robert Amsterdam, CFP Founder
Given where things stood going into Barack Obama’s first visit to Russia, it was moderately successful from a diplomatic perspective. The new U.S. president brought a few billion in business deals, agreed to some cuts in nuclear arms and made it clear he’d be willing to compromise on the contentious missile [...]

Russia’s Rule of Law an Issue of Security

CFP Founder Robert Amsterdam below provides an insightful analysis, shedding light on a more tangible ‘Obama doctrine’, based on the U.S. President’s historic meetings with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev over the last few days. There is true potential for greater international awareness with regard to the drawn curtain that has been Russia’s government, especially when [...]

Insightful Innovation = Softest Recession

In an era of geopolitical tumultuousness and a future deemed uncertain with regard to investor confidence in political and economic risks, Norway has much to crow about. With international investors looking to re-enter the global market, the corporate foreign policies of Norway promote autonomous free enterprise and the security of low political risk for [...]