Readers of this blog may have heard of the Center for Eurasian Strategic Intelligence (CESI) that seems to promote a "hawkish" view on Russia's foreign policy. In his Twitter, Edward Lucas has recently raised doubts about the authenticity of this organisation, and, as I found out, for a good reason. Let's have a closer look at CESI.
Russia's economy continues to suffer, in part because of the Ukraine sanctions:
The Russian ruble has hit new lows against the dollar and the euro in early trading in Moscow.
The ruble hit 58.2 rubles to the dollar and 73.14 rubles to the euro, up sharply from the December 12 records of 57 rubles/$1 and 70 rubles/euro.
The rates reflected slight drops in the price of oil on world markets.
The Russian stock indexes MICEX and RTS were steady in early trading on the Moscow stock market.
The ruble has lost about 60 percent of its value against the dollar in 2014, with most of the losses occurring since the summer after the United States, Canada, the EU, and other Western countries imposed economic sanctions on Russia over its actions in Ukraine. (Interfax and TASS)
Calls for Kyiv to press forward with reforms:
French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have called on Ukraine to press ahead with economic reforms.
Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert said on December 14 that the two leaders encouraged Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in a telephone call to "get the planned sweeping reforms under way."
"Only that way can the economy recover and the necessary international financial help be advanced," he said.
On December 13 in Kyiv, the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) first deputy managing director, David Lipton, said he was "impressed" by Ukraine's plans for reform to avoid bankruptcy and defaulting on its debts.
Ukraine's parliament last week approved the government's economic program of reforms aimed at securing billions of dollars in financial aid from the IMF and other lenders.
The program includes overhauling the tax system, raising energy tariffs, and privatizing state firms. (Reuters and AFP)