{"product_id":"2940148761570","title":"POLITICAL TRENDS IN THE NEW EASTERN EUROPE: UKRAINE AND BELARUS","description":"Belarus remains the last true dictatorship in Europe.\u003cbr\u003eAs such, its internal and external security agenda is an\u003cbr\u003eabiding matter of concern to the European and Western\u003cbr\u003ecommunities. But its trajectory is of equal concern\u003cbr\u003eto Moscow, which has been the prime external supporter\u003cbr\u003eand subsidizer of the Belarussian government\u003cbr\u003eunder President Alyaksandr Lukashenka. So while\u003cbr\u003eEurope seeks to induce democratic change and democratic\u003cbr\u003eforces are trying to establish themselves in the\u003cbr\u003eface of withering oppression, Russia has hitherto been\u003cbr\u003ethe main external prop for Lukashenka’s policies. But\u003cbr\u003edespite this support—most pronounced until 2007 in\u003cbr\u003eterms of defense cooperation which is continuing, and\u003cbr\u003ein energy subsidies which are being terminated—tensions\u003cbr\u003ebetween Moscow and Minsk are growing. The\u003cbr\u003ebrief energy cutoffs imposed by Moscow at the start\u003cbr\u003eof the year and Belarus’ retaliation shows that not all\u003cbr\u003eis well in that relationship. Not surprisingly, Lukashenka\u003cbr\u003ehas now turned back to the West for foreign support,\u003cbr\u003ebut it will not be forthcoming without significant\u003cbr\u003edomestic reform which is quite unlikely.\u003cbr\u003eUkraine presents a different series of puzzles and\u003cbr\u003echallenges to Western leaders and audiences. It too\u003cbr\u003ehas suffered from Russian energy coercion, but its political\u003cbr\u003esystem is utterly different from Belarus and in a\u003cbr\u003estate of profound turmoil. Therefore, precise analysis\u003cbr\u003eof what has occurred and what is currently happening\u003cbr\u003ein Ukraine is essential to a correct understanding\u003cbr\u003eof trends there that can then inform sound policymaking.\u003cbr\u003eThese two papers, presented at the Strategic Studies\u003cbr\u003eInstitute (SSI)-Ellison Center conference on Russia in 2006, open the way to this kind of informed understanding\u003cbr\u003eof important issues in European security and\u003cbr\u003eenable readers to begin to make sense of the complex\u003cbr\u003eissues involved in each country. In both cases, the interplay\u003cbr\u003eof domestic and foreign factors of security is critical\u003cbr\u003eto any grasp of the issues in Belarus and Ukraine\u003cbr\u003eand thus to sound policy analysis and policymaking\u003cbr\u003ein regard to them. This interplay is one of the defining\u003cbr\u003efeatures of the international security agenda that the\u003cbr\u003eU.S. Army, U.S. Government, and to a lesser degree,\u003cbr\u003eSSI grapple with on a daily basis and which SSI seeks\u003cbr\u003eto present to its audiences.","brand":"ReadCycle","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47111504003312,"sku":"2940148761570","price":2.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/2940148761570_p0.jpg?v=1763707964","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/2940148761570","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}