Why does Russia always seem to be a step ahead of the U.S. in Syria? The answer is simple: Moscow knows exactly what it wants, and the U.S. doesn’t.

Will the Archbishop of Uganda excommunicate the Archbishop of Canterbury by 2019?

At the end of the day, Trump’s appeal may be more visceral than substantive.

Possible scramble to get referendum done before next POTUS elected.

But it’s hard to see Putin coming to some sort of agreement with OPEC when the cartel’s own members can’t trust one another enough to make any cuts of their own.

A Japan–Russia collaboration may make a lot of sense for both parties.

It’s not every day that one of the world’s nastiest intelligence services is forced to close.

There are signs that the “prison reform moment” may be on hold—or at least, that the dissenters will be more vocal than they were last year or the year before.

What’s happening in Kazakhstan is a leading indicator of Russia’s rather dim future.

In 2015, movements up and down the rankings had more to do with foreign policy missteps than with any actual achievements.