Commentary

Lithuania’s Governing Coalition Battered in a General Election Lithuania’s general election has resulted in a crushing defeat for the incumbent center-right government, led by Ingrida Šimonytė. The largest party of the outgoing governing coalition, the Homeland Union, lost nearly...

This week, Dr. Indra Ekmanis participated in a US Helsinki Commission briefing, “Contesting Russia: Lessons from Central & Eastern Europe.” Read her opening remarks below as she highlights how the Baltic states play an essential role in shaping a...

Rwanda—the small, landlocked country in East Africa known colloquially as the “land of a thousand hills”—has arguably gained outsized influence in Africa in recent years. Previously known most prominently for the horrors enacted against ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus...

Introduction Historically, Russia has done everything it can to keep countries that were formerly part of the Soviet Union in its so-called “sphere of influence” as far from the West’s orbit as possible. However, in recent years, some of...

On the morning of September 7, an armed Russian kamikaze unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) landed in Gaigalava parish in Eastern Latvia. The UAV was a Shahed 136-type drone of Iranian descent, which Russia uses widely in its war in...

G7 and BRICS The G7, led by the United States in the Global North, and BRICS, led by China in the Global South, are each working diligently to control the rules-based international order. To better understand this competition, it...

In October 2022, the Biden administration introduced export controls to limit China’s access to advanced US semiconductors and technologies, aiming to maintain US technological superiority and address security concerns. These controls, targeting areas such as advanced chips and supercomputer...

Since its creation in 1955, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has dominated the Japanese Diet, or parliament, winning a majority in almost every election. However, its grip on the Diet is loosening, as shown by the loss of three...

Relations between Latvia and African countries have generally been rather distant. They are far apart in geographic terms. There is no sizeable community of Africans in Latvia or Latvian communities in Africa. Economic and political cooperation has been sporadic...

The Baltic states are among the most ardent supporters of Ukraine in the war against Russia. It is widely understood that Ukraine is fighting not only for its survival and the right to determine its path forward, but also...