Iranian Protest Movement as Seen from Kyiv and Moscow

At the end of 2025 and the beginning of 2026, Iran was gripped by mass public protests unprecedented in recent decades both in scale and in the level of violence. They began as a reaction to the most severe economic and environmental crisis in the country’s history, which reached its peak by January 2026, but within a few days evolved into an anti-government political movement. At the time of writing, it is still impossible to determine whether the leaders and participants of the protests will succeed in overthrowing the fundamentalist regime of radical Shiite Islamists, or whether the authorities, as in the past, will manage to suppress the burgeoning revolutionary process.

The Central Asian Vector in Israeli Foreign Policy: Emerging Prospects for Cooperation with Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan

Since gaining independence, the Central Asian states have maintained a position of neutrality toward Israel. Following Kazakhstan’s accession to the Abraham Accords on 6 November 2025, Israel may find itself presented with an opportunity to significantly expand its diplomatic presence in both Central Asia and the Caspian Basin (after Azerbaijan joined the “Central Asian Five” in 2025, the two spaces may reasonably be viewed as a single international region — a point that will be elaborated below). It is therefore worth examining how Israeli diplomacy has begun to make use of this emerging “window of opportunity” and what potential trajectories might exist for Israel’s foreign policy in this context.

“They Are Here to Stay.” The Phenomenalization of the Vietnamese Diaspora in Russia

Legal labor migration has become a defining political dilemma for aging societies, and Russia’s search for solutions reveals striking historical parallels. Tracing the half-century formation of the Vietnamese diaspora, the report shows how policies designed for temporary labor repeatedly produced permanent communities instead. The experience of “Russian Vietnam” challenges current assumptions that migrants from the “far abroad” will simply work, leave, and leave no lasting imprint.

Armenia at the Crossroads: The Perils of Strategic Ambiguity

As Yerevan simultaneously pursues a Trump-brokered peace with Azerbaijan and deepens ties with Tehran and Moscow, Armenia risks squandering historic opportunities while aligning with declining powers.

Monthly Monitoring of Analytical Publications on Post-Soviet Conflicts

Not only the events and news of the newly begun year have their roots in 2025. The research and academic publications from December that we present to our readers in the January monitoring issue are also grounded in the past—but have a clear projection into the future. As usual, this issue offers readers unexpected research methods, new academic centers, authors whose work we have not previously covered, and other substantive discoveries.

Lithuania’s LRT Crisis as a Test of Civil Resilience and Engagement

The recent developments around Lithuania's public broadcaster, LRT, caught a lot of attention both within the country and internationally. The situation runs deeper than just legislative efforts to reform LRT's management. On one hand, this issue largely reflects the effects of the extreme plurality of the country’s political system. On the other hand, it also shows how the Lithuanian public perceives its national broadcaster.

Reconfiguration of Power in the Middle East: The Russian and Post-Soviet Dimension

The revival of the Israel–Greece–Cyprus partnership reflects a broader realignment in the Eastern Mediterranean driven by Turkey’s expanding military posture, competition over energy routes, and debates on Gaza’s postwar future. These dynamics are embedded in larger connectivity projects such as IMEC and the Middle Corridor, while provoking sharp resistance from Ankara. Russia’s increasingly ambivalent stance suggests diminishing readiness to back Turkish ambitions as its own priorities shift toward Ukraine, Central Asia, and pragmatic engagement with Washington.

BESA Post-Soviet Conflicts Research Digest No. 27 (December 2025)

The publication portfolio of the PSCR program in December 2025 was as diverse as to cover the security problems of the Baltic states, the new U.S. National Security Strategy, antisemitic tropes in post-Soviet wars, the difficulties faced by the post-Soviet Jewish immigrants in Poland, and Iranian officials’ reaction to Armenia’s foreign policies.

The Baltic Alarm: Why Europe Must Listen to Its Eastern Frontier

The Baltic states are preparing for war — not a hypothetical conflict decades away, but one their leaders believe could come within five years. “Russia is a threat today, tomorrow and in the long future,” Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo warned this month. The question is whether Western Europe will listen.

Iranian Fears to Lose Armenia to the West and Israel: Will Pressure on Yerevan Succeed?

A single visit by an Armenian deputy foreign minister to Israel was enough to trigger sharp anxiety in Tehran, revealing how sensitive Armenia’s foreign policy choices have become for Iran’s regional security calculations. Fears of the Zangezur (“Trump”) Corridor, Israeli influence on Iran’s northern border, and strategic encirclement have pushed Tehran to apply open pressure—forcing Yerevan into visible rhetorical retreat and renewed declarations of loyalty

PSCRP