September 16:
After Ukraine, are the Baltics next? "The Russian government is laying the groundwork for a Ukrainian scenario in the Baltic countries, arguing that the three are mistreating ethnic Russians, that the West has failed to oppose such actions, and that Moscow is compelled under the circumstances to work to protect these members of 'the Russian world,'" writes Paul Goble in Window on Eurasia. Goble cites Konstantin Dolgov, the Russian Foreign Ministry's special representative for human rights, democracy and the rule of law, as floating these arguments at a recent conference in Riga, Latvia. The development is troubling, Goble notes, in part because "Dolgov openly encouraged ethnic Russians and Russian speakers in the Baltic states to become more active, promising that Moscow will support them."
September 17:
Russia's embargo on European foodstuffs, imposed by the Kremlin earlier this year in retaliation for U.S. and EU sanctions, is starting to bite. According to Eurasianet, a downturn in revenue as a result of the closure of the Russian market has prompted the European Union to begin providing economic assistance to affected European fruit producers and dairy vendors. The aid includes some 158 million Euros (nearly $200 million) for fruit and vegetable growers and 30 million Euros (almost $38 million) for dairy farmers who have been affected by Russia's ban on European perishables.
September 18:
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko is making the case against Russia in Washington. McClatchy reports that, in a spirited address before a joint session of Congress, Poroshenko insisted that Ukraine's fight "is America's war, too." Democracies, the Ukrainian president insisted, "must show solidarity in the face of aggression and adversity. Otherwise they will be eliminated one by one."
Among Poroshenko's concrete requests to the Obama administration and Congress was the provision of weaponry to reinforce Ukraine's armed forces. To date, the White House has refused to provide Ukraine with military hardware - a position that falls short of materially aiding Kyiv in its fight against Moscow. "One cannot win the war with blankets," Poroshenko told lawmakers.
Russia's state-run broadcaster continues to expand its outreach toward the Middle East. RIA Novosti reports that Rossiya Segodnya, the Kremlin's official information agency, is in the process of launching an Arabic-language newswire. With the launch of the Arabic newswire, which is slated for September 22nd, "more people around the world will be able to get prompt, objective and exclusive information on the most important events in Russia and the world," the agency's deputy director, Dmitri Gruzdev, has said.
Other Rossiya Segodnya employees put the situation a bit differently - and more tellingly. "Over 30 Rossiya Segodnya correspondents prepare exclusive stories about Russia and the events taking place in the country in an accessible and familiar to the Arab world manner every day," according to the new service chief, Rima Mayta. "Our motto is 'We don't translate news, we create it!'"
September 19:
Russian president Vladimir Putin has leveled a threat at Eastern Europe. According to Germany’s Seuddeutsche Zeitung, a recent conversation between Putin and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko included an assertion by Putin that Russian troops could invade Eastern Europe, including Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Lithuania, and Romania "in two days" if the Kremlin made the strategic decision to do so. The comments mark an escalation of Russian rhetoric; previously, Putin has asserted that he could overtake the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv in two weeks, but had made no corresponding remarks about other former Soviet states or satellites.
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