Taking Knowledge Public

Keith Brown

theconversation.com August 22, 2024

Treating Nord Stream blasts as a whodunit misses the point – and plays into Russia’s plan to distract and divide

In the two years since saboteurs planted explosives on Nord Stream 1 and 2 – gas pipelines that spanned the Baltic Sea to connect Russia to Germany – the finger of suspicion has fallen on a succession of possible culprits.

... 

Keith Brown

theconversation.com March 11, 2024

In Kyrgyzstan, creeping authoritarianism rubs up against proud tradition of people power

The people of Kyrgyzstan have a well-earned reputation for “street democracy.”

Since emerging from the breakup of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s, citizens in the Central Asian republic have taken it upon themselves to oust presidents who attempt to overstay their welcome or engage in corruption.

... 

Alexander McConnell

digitalscholarship.umich.edu February 20, 2024

Season 5 | Episode 3 | “Peace to the World”: Lessons from the Soviet Antiwar Underground

On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine aimed at toppling the government in Kyiv. Within hours, antiwar activists were organizing demonstrations against the attack, and in the following weeks thousands of protestors were arrested in major cities ... 

Michael Kiel

Eurasianet.com March 3, 2023

Perspectives | Global environmentalism as a peacemaker in the South Caucasus

There is no shortage of conflicts in and around the Caucasus.

But for nine days last summer, beneath the frozen peaks in Racha and Svaneti, I saw what peace looks like...

Victor Peskin

Academicminute.org February 2023

The Politics of Prosecuting Putin

What would make the U.S. government hesitant to prosecute Vladimir Putin? Victor Peskin, associate professor in the school of politics and global studies at Arizona State University ...

Spencer Warren

Nationalinterest.org February 2023

 Is Russia Preparing for a Nuclear Weapons Test?

The death of New START is likely upon us. In its wake is the increasing potential for a new era of Russian nuclear testing...

Eugene Clay

Theconversation.com February 2023

Many Ukrainians are fleeing to the Greek Catholic Church in Lviv, which has a long and complex history in the Orthodox faith

Since Russia invaded Ukraine, millions of refugees have fled westward to escape the fighting. Many have sought shelter in Ukraine’s westernmost city, Lviv, a historic center of ...

Victor Peskin

Theconversation.com December 1, 2022

EU plans to set up a new court to prosecute Russia's war on Ukraine - but there's a mixed record on holding leaders like Putin accountable for waging wars

A senior European Union official announced on Nov. 30, 2022, that the EU will work with the United Nations in the hopes of setting up a special court that would...

Anya Free

WilsonCenter.org October 27, 2022

Alexander Nevsky of Russia, Reanimated and Repurposed

Russia’s so-called “special military operation” has a neo-imperial twist to it. For the insatiable Russia, occupation of the land does not suffice: the largest country in the world is attempting...

Erica Glenn

Acdawestern.org/tactus Fall 2022

Music and Morale Among Ukrainian Refugees

55-year-old Olga Burlakova sang many roles with the Kharkiv National Opera, including Iolanta in Iolanta, Tatiana in Eugene Onegin, and Sacerdotessa in Aida. Then the theater was bombed by Russian forces and Olga...

Eugene Clay

Theconversation.com September 20, 2022

Why Pope Francis chose to highlight religious freedom during his visit to Kazakhstan

Pope Francis spent three days in Kazakhstan, starting Sept. 13, 2022, to attend the Seventh Congress of World and Traditional Religions. The pope met with religious leaders, called for increased...

Jacob Lassin

zocalopublicsquare.org August 1, 2022

How Literature Became a Weapon in Russia's Culture Wars

It's a Battle of Tolstoys as Protestors Face off Against Putin's Propaganda Machine...

Eugene Clay

The conversation.com July 28, 2022

Russia's invasion of Ukraine threatens a cultural heritage the two countries share, including Saint Sophia Cathedral

More than 160 Ukrainian cultural sites have been damaged or destroyed since Russia invaded the country in February 2022, according to UNESCO. The Ukrainian government claims the number of damaged...

Victor Peskin

Theconversation.com June 15, 2022

International courts prosecuting leaders like Putin for war crimes have a mixed record – but offer clues on how to get a conviction

There have been mounting calls from Ukrainian and other activists and political leaders to prosecute Russian President Vladimir Putin for war crimes in Ukraine, including authorizing attacks on civilians. There...

Eugene Clay

Theconversation.com March 28, 2022

Two Orthodox Christian countries at war there's an explanation of the faith tradition shared by Russia and Ukraine

President Vladimir Putin’s decision to attack Ukraine has split the Orthodox Church. Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, a leading authority of the Eastern Orthodox Church, quickly condemned the “unprovoked invasion of...

Eugene Clay

Theconversation.com February 21, 2022

Ukraine crisis: Putin recognizes breakaway regions, Biden orders limited sanctions - 5 essential reads

Russia sent troops to two Moscow-allied breakaway regions in Ukraine, after President Vladimir Putin recognized the regions’ independence. Five stories provide background to the growing conflict.

Eugene Clay

Cronkitenews.azpbs.org February 18, 2022

Despite rising Russian tension, 'I'm here and I'll stay in Ukraine'

Despite U.S. warnings that Americans should leave Ukraine in the face of a possible Russian invasion, former Arizona resident Lada Roslycky says she is standing her ground. “It’s too important”...

Keith Brown

Theconversation.com February 18, 2022

The US Doesn't need to wait for an invasion to impose sanctions on Russia - it could invoke the Magnitsky Act now

As Russian military forces have deployed at the Ukraine border, U.S. politicians have been weighing new sanctions to deter an invasion. In the face of growing tensions, the Senate Foreign...

Eugene Clay

Theconversation.com February 7, 2022

Why church conflict in Ukraine reflects historic Russian-Ukrainian tensions

Two different Orthodox churches claim to be the one true Ukrainian Orthodox Church for the Ukrainian people. The two churches offer strikingly different visions of the relationship between the Ukrainian...

Qubaiova & Jovanović

Lefteast.org April 12, 2021

[PODCAST] Comparative Waterfronts: Glass, Steel, and Capital in Beirut and Belgrade

Beirut and Belgrade show off their emergence out of war by investing in massive construction projects on their waterfronts. But these modern projects are also sites of gentrification, erasure, and political contestation. Join Adriana ...

Jacob Lassin

Theconversation.com December 21, 2021

Why Putin has such a hard time accepting Ukrainian sovereignty

Ukraine is again looking warily over its eastern border as Russia threatens its territorial integrity. In recent weeks, a buildup of Russian troops along the Ukrainian border has rattled Western...

Garine Palandjian

Bright Garden Voices February 23, 2021

Meeting 3: Us & Them

Our third meeting is titled "Us & Them", with Nazrin Gadimova-Akbulut and Garine Palandjian as our guests. Matters relating to identity are hotly disputed among Azerbaijanis and Armenians, often carrying...

Hilde Hoogenboom

Theconversation.com February 25, 2021

Alexei Navalny leads Russians in a historic battle against arbitrary rule, with words echoing Catherine the Great

Tens of thousands of young Russians are protesting the leadership of Vladimir Putin nationwide in freezing temperatures. Thousands have been arrested. Central to these well-organized protests is Russia’s opposition leader,...

Jacob Lassin

Publicorthodoxy.org January 21, 2021

The Russian Orthodox Church's "Black List of False Clerics"

On November 19, 2020, The Russian Orthodox Church’s Synodal Department for Church Relations with Society published what many media sources have referred to as a “black list of false clerics.”...

Jamie Horowitz

items.ssrc.org December 15, 2020

Disinformation and Democracy: The Columbian Experience

Since 2016, US-based scholars, policymakers, and journalists have exhaustively documented the rise and spread of disinformation engineered to polarize public opinion. From the conspiracy of “pizzagate” during the 2016 US...

Steve Corman

ASU Library | Podcast November 18, 2020

Wildfire Disinformation Narratives with Dr. Steve Corman

This is Misinfo Weekly, a somewhat weekly program about misinformation in our time. Misinfo Weekly is made by the Unit for Data Science and Analytics at Arizona State University Library....

Keith Brown

Theconversation.com October 21, 2020

From Macedonia to America: Civics lessons from the former Yugoslavia.

Americans protesting police violence may find inspiration in the activism of Macedonian citizens in the last years of Communist rule in Yugoslavia. In August 1987, Communist party leaders imposed, without...

Keith Brown

Canadian Macedonian Historical Society September 19, 2020

How History will look upon the Prespa Agreement.

"Keith Brown currently serves as Director of the Melikian Center: Russian, Eurasian and East European Studies. He is Professor in the School of Politics and Global Studies. Previously he was...

Candace Rondeaux

Newamerica.org November 7, 2019

Decoding the Wagner Group: Analyzing the Role of Private Military Security Contractors in Russian Proxy Warfare.

Russian private military security contractors (PMSCs) are pivotal players in ongoing proxy wars in the Greater Middle East and its periphery. Their covert operations—real and imagined—are also critical in shaping...

Keith Brown

Slate.com October 24, 2019

What a 150 year Old Gun Tells Us About the End of Colt's AR-15. The History of weapons technology suggests that arms often escape the control of their maker.

Guns outlive their designers, makers, and first users. When they retire from military service, they still have a lot of death in them. I held the evidence of this in...

Iveta Silova

The FreshEd Podcast July 8, 2019

Childhood And Schooling In Socialist Societies (Iveta Silova And Nelli Piattoeva).

What was it like growing up and attending school in the Soviet Union and other socialist societies? Did the lived experiences of children match the official rhetoric of the state...

Liisa Past

Theconversation.com June 13, 2019

European elections suggest the US shouldn't be complacent about 2020.

In many ways, the European Parliament elections in late May were calmer than expected. The more extreme political players, while gaining strength, did not do as well as many predicted....

Keith Brown and Liisa Past

Theconversation.com March 28, 2019

Attack against elections is inevitable - Estonia shows what can be done.

Kremlin-backed attackers are working to influence the upcoming European Parliament elections, according to cybersecurity firm FireEye. A hacking campaign has targeted governments and political organizations as well as think tanks...

Keith Brown

Theconversation.com August 6, 2018

Vladimir Putin's lying game.

At the now infamous Helsinki press conference held after the summit meeting between Presidents Trump and Putin, Trump indicated he was impressed with Putin’s denial of Russian interference in the...

Peter Schmelz

A blog entry August 3, 2018

When Valentin Silvestrov Turned 80

Ukrainian composer Valentin Silvestrov burst onto the European and American scenes in the 1960s as an avant-garde rabble rouser who produced dissonant, large-scale orchestral pieces, chief among them his Symphony

Mark von Hagen

Inclusion.asu.edu July 20, 2018 

 ASU adds Ukrainian to offerings of languages crucial to national security

The Critical Languages Institute at Arizona State University has added Ukrainian to its roster of languages taught to bolster national security, and it’s one of the few immersive programs for...

Keith Brown

ASU Now - Got a Minute? May 29, 2018 

Keith Brown on Violence.

"Violence begets violence...We need to understand the chain of violence in order to break out of it." Keith Brown is a professor in ASU's School of Politics and Global Studies.

Iveta Silova

The FreshEd Podcast July 20, 2018 

#28 - Textbooks in Latvia Before and After The Soviet Union (Iveta Silova).

My guest today is Iveta Silova, Director of the Center for the Advanced Studies in Global Education at Arizona State University. Professor Silova has spent her career studying post-socialist education...