Brian Whitmore is the author of RFE/RL's popular Power Vertical blog, written especially for Russia wonks and obsessive Kremlin watchers, and the host of the weekly Power Vertical Podcast.
The Daily Vertical is a video primer for Russia-watchers that appears Monday through Friday.
If there was ever any doubt that Russia is engaging in little more than a game of geopolitical extortion in Syria, there shouldn't be any more.
At its summit in Wales, NATO rediscovered and reaffirmed its original reason for existence -- protecting its member states.
Playing rough with its neighbors is nothing new for Russia. Moscow has been doing this almost from the moment the Soviet Union broke up. What is different now is that the neighbors are pushing back -- with an assist from Europe.
Critics say Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili's government is softening its stance to Russia and risking Georgian security. But officials counter that their approach is more pragmatic -- and will be more effective in dealing with Georgia’s powerful adversary to the north.
Half a year after losing power, President Mikheil Saakashvili’s United National Movement is a shadow of the juggernaut that once dominated Georgian politics.
As Russian President Vladimir Putin's star dims, an era is drawing to a close. But a new one has yet to take shape to replace it.
Pussy Riot isn't really a punk band and they didn't really play a concert in Moscow's Christ the Savior Cathedral. So what exactly did they do that has gotten them into so much trouble?
Now comes the hard part. Vladimir Putin has won a third term in the Kremlin and a mandate to rule until 2018. But he faces an emboldened protest movement, a divided elite, and an economy badly in need of reform.
Incidents involving Jewish diplomats being targeted for attack in the South Caucasus illustrate how Georgia and Azerbaijan risk being drawn into the conflict between Tehran on one side and Israel and the West on the other.
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