Closing the Door: Executive summary
The expert contributors to this essay collection describe an extremely challenging situation for political and NGO activists, along with other at-risk people from the former Soviet Union (FSU) who are…
Former Soviet Union
Moldova
Articles
Introduction: Closing the door on those in need
It is not a good time to be seeking refuge from authorities who wish you harm. The cumulative impact in recent years of the Mediterranean migrant crisis, increasing fear of…
The region less-explored: Europe’s response to persons coming from the former Soviet Union in a changing Common European Asylum System
In the Foreign Policy Centre’s 2014 publication ‘Shelter from the Storm’, The European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) gave an overview of the development of the Common European Asylum…
The pushback of asylum seekers from the North Caucasus and Central Asia at the Polish border
The situation at the Belarusian-Polish border For many years, refugees from countries of the former Soviet Union have transited through Belarus in order to seek international protection in Poland. The…
Azerbaijan: Challenges to migrants and asylum seekers from the oil-rich state
Political migration from Azerbaijan during the last decade was consistently on the rise due to the increasingly authoritarian rule in the country, boosted by high world oil prices. The cautious…
Crimea: Deportations and forced transfer of the civil population
On February 27th 2014, the Russian Federation (RF) began a military operation to occupy Crimea, which is a part of Ukraine. Within a few weeks the RF had established military…
INTERPOL reforms and the challenges ahead for cross-border cooperation
There is increasing awareness that criminal activity is more globalised than ever before, and that states can only tackle this problem successfully through effective cross-border cooperation. In this context, the…
Closing the Door: Conclusions and recommendations
The contributors to this essay collection have described some of the main challenges that activists and other at-risk people from the former Soviet Union face in trying to seek asylum…
Institutionally Blind: The next steps in reforming the Council of Europe and the OSCE
The Council of Europe (CoE) and Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) are two regional bodies that bring together European, post-Soviet (and in the case of the OSCE)…
The Information Battle : Executive Summary
The information battle examines the ways in which the governments of former Soviet Union (FSU) look to shape international narratives about themselves by using media, social media, advertising and supportive…
The Information Battle Introduction: A battle for hearts and minds
Events can move a debate quickly. When initially developing the idea for this essay collection in the summer of 2014[1], it was clear that the role of media and social…
How many people watch Russian media in the former Soviet Union countries?
Television remains the most efficient method of influencing public opinion in the Former Soviet Union (FSU) countries. So what is the real impact of Russian TV channels in these countries?…
How (not to) cover lies: Lessons of Russian disinformation
On March 12 2014, long before anyone could imagine Donald Trump becoming President of the United States and concepts of ‘fake news’ and ‘alternative facts’ turning into global buzzwords, a…
In search of credibility: RT and the BBC in a ‘post-truth’ world
Introduction: Cracks in the Western (neo) liberal consensus Among many other things, 2016 will surely be remembered as the year that the terms ‘post truth’ and ‘fake news’ took root…
The Information Battle Conclusion: Winning the battle of ideas
‘For now we see through a glass, darkly.’[1] Through increasingly sophisticated and high budget media outputs, glossy adverts, high-profile events and well connected lobbyists, authoritarian regimes from the former…
No Shelter: Executive summary
This publication shows how repressive regimes from the former Soviet Union, most notably Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan operate outside their borders to challenge dissenting voices. The exiles and…
No Shelter Introduction: The harassment of activists abroad by intelligence services from the former Soviet Union
The repressive nature of many governments in the former Soviet Union and how that they repress those who attempt to challenge these systems has been repeatedly and well documented, including…
‘RepressIntern’: Russian security cooperation with fellow authoritarians
Under Vladimir Putin, Moscow has assiduously sought to retain its authority over the states of former-Soviet Eurasia (with the grudging exception of the Baltics), through a combination of political connection,…
Chechnya – Repression without borders
You are the ones who are hurting yourselves. Someday, in five-ten years, you will have to return, or your parents will tell that it is time for you to come…
No Shelter: Conclusion and Recommendations
This publication has shown in significant detail how repressive regimes from the former Soviet Union, most notably Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan operate outside their borders to challenge dissenting…
Sharing Worst Practice Executive Summary
The findings of Sharing worst practice: How countries and institutions in the former Soviet Union help create legal tools of repression highlight the clear similarities in the types of repressive…
Introduction: Sharing worst practice in the former Soviet Union
Sharing worst practice: How countries and institutions in the former Soviet Union help create legal tools of repression examines the extent to which governments across the former Soviet Union (FSU)…
The ‘Moscow Consensus’: Constructing autocracy in post-Soviet Eurasia
For the past decade, the annual report from Freedom House on political and civil liberties has made for sombre reading. Every year for the past 12 years it has marked…
How countries and institutions in the former Soviet Union help create legal tools of repression
The recent history of law making in Eastern Europe and Central Asia has been characterised by a significant number of countries adopting laws that suffocate civil society and limit human…
Russia’s influence in shrinking civic space in Central Asia
Since gaining their independence in 1991, the five countries of Central Asia have never been easy places to be a human rights defender (HRD). From the very beginning, when international…
Legislating against foreign funding of human rights – A tool of repression in the former Soviet Union
The ability of civil society organisations (hereinafter referred to as non-governmental organisations or ‘NGOs’) to seek, secure and use resources, including foreign funding, is a fundamental component of their right…
Russia’s ‘traditional values’ leadership
The trend: State enforcement of traditional values Over the last ten years, the countries of the former Soviet Union have seen a growing trend of legislation aimed at protecting the…
Freedom of the media under attack across the former Soviet Union
Leaders in the majority of countries of the former Soviet Union have long viewed the expression of alternative viewpoints and dissent as a threat, establishing economic and legislative environments that…
The legal framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization: An architecture of authoritarianism
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) purports to be a broad-based international organisation formally tasked with promoting multilateral cooperation within Central Asia. However, a deeper look at this organisation illustrates that…
Sharing Worst Practice Conclusion: Shared interests, similar practices
The findings of this publication show that there are clear similarities in the types of repressive practices being undertaken by countries across the former Soviet Union. First and foremost this…
Publications
Closing the Door: the challenge facing activists from the former Soviet Union seeking asylum or refuge
The challenge facing activists from the former Soviet Union seeking asylum or refuge.
04/12/17
The information battle: How governments in the former Soviet Union promote their agendas & attack their opponents abroad
How governments of former Soviet Union (FSU) shape international narratives & challenge opponents.
16/03/17
No shelter: the harassment of activists abroad by intelligence services from the former Soviet Union
Examining experiences of exiled activists unable to escape their country’s security services.
21/11/16
Sharing worst practice: How countries and institutions in the former Soviet Union help create legal tools of repression
Looking at ways in which authoritarian regimes learn from each other & collaborate in repression.
24/05/16
Institutionally blind? International organisations and human rights abuses in the former Soviet Union
Examining if major international institutions are meeting their human rights commitments in the FSU.
08/02/16
Traditional religion and political power: Examining the role of the church in Georgia, Armenia, Ukraine and Moldova
Examining the political and social role of the church in Georgia, Armenia, Ukraine and Moldova.
27/10/15
Trouble in the Neighbourhood? The future of the EU’s Eastern Partnership
Trouble in the Neighbourhood? The future of the EU’s Eastern Partnership takes stock of recent…
02/03/15