Ústav mezinárodních vztahů

Is Trump Bad News for Putin?
The American president has not proved quite the ally Moscow may have expected," writes Mark Galeotti for The Atlantic.

Political scientist: Czechs‘ failure to improve road and rail links with Austria is hurting business
Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen wass in Prague for his first official visit to Czech Republic since taking office in January of this year. The former Green Party leader arrived by train which was several minutes late pulling into Prague’s Main Railway Station, inadvertently highlighting one of the key issues on the agenda of the upcoming talks: the need to improve road and rail links between the two neighbor states. Daniela Lazarová from Radio Prague asked Jan Kovář about the main sticking points in bilateral relations today.

It’s the Russians Wot Done It (Op-ed)
"The Kremlin is a convenient villain for our troubled times — and that narrative is playing right into Putin’s hands," writes Mark Galeotti in his piece for Moscow Times.

China's 16+1 foray into Central and Eastern Europe
Half a decade after it was launched, the network of cooperation between China and 16 Central and Eastern European countries has brought uneven economical and political fruits so far. Petr Kratochvíl commented on the developments regarding the 16+1 cooperation in an interview for EUobserver.

Life after Putin becomes debatable
"This Thursday, Vladimir Putin holds one of his trademark ‘Direct Line’ television spectaculars, an annual marathon at which he answers (carefully-curated) questions from the Russian public. In part, this is a symbolic act, the tsar speaking directly to his people, and in part an unashamedly political one, a reaffirmation of his effortless control of the system. It comes at a time when, despite Alexei Navalny’s anti-corruption campaign and rumblings from the impoverished masses, he seems unassailable as he prepares for another coronation in the 2018 presidential elections. So why is there now so much more talk about life after Putin?" asks Mark Galeotti in his newest piece for IntelliNews Business New Europe.

Zolotov's Army
Mark Galeotti, as co-host of the Power Vertical Podcast discussed the Russian National Guard, its controversial leader, how they fit into the constellation of Russia's security services, and what we should expect from them.

Putin's message: make Russia great again
Is Russia a superpower or a house of cards? This was the subject of a debate organised by RaamopRusland in De Balie in Amsterdam and attended by our security expert Mark Galeotti. According to him, it is neither. In his opinion Putin is just 'agressively offensively defensive', trying to protect a weak state by using the flaws of the West. Even before Trump he was trying 'to make Russia great again'.

The US-Russian “axis of emptiness”
What does it say when the biggest story to come out of a meeting between the president of the US and the Russian foreign minister is a spat over whether a Russian photographer should have been allowed into the Oval Office? That, at present, the relationship between Moscow and Washington is more about optics and unwarranted optimism than any real substance, writes Mark Galeotti in his recent analysis for IntelliNews Business New Europe .

On shaky ground: Russia’s FSB vs migrant radicalisation
"Scrambling to address the growing threat of Islamist terrorism from Central Asia, Russia’s security apparatus is forced to depend on questionable foreign intelligence services?" writes Mark Galeotti in his analysis for openDemocracy.

Hard lessons from the Manchester attack
A personal reflection of Benjamin Tallis in the wake of the Manchester terrorist attack.