Nicholas Dima

Abstract

East Europe from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea and further to the Caucasus area continues to remain a region of confrontation between the security interests of the United States and the geopolitical ambitions of Russia. Through geographic extension, this confrontation reaches into the Middle East; and through the convergence of interests between Moscow and Beijing, it acquires global dimensions. Consequently, East Europe is essential for Europe as a whole and is important for the national interests of the United States.

After the dismemberment of the Soviet Union, East Europe acquired an increased geo-political importance and went through stages: A few years of euphoria; a few more years of adjusting to new reality; and the last ten years of struggle between Putin’s Russia and America.

Gradually, Moscow redefined it geopolitical concepts and reclaimed a sphere of influence over the newly independent countries of Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova and the three Caucasian republics, which it calls the “Near Aboard.” This is the battleground now between Russia, NATO, and the United States.

As of 2019, Russia has just won a new battle in Syria that may reconfigure the geopolitical scenario of the entire Middle East. That is scary: America and Israel against Iran, Russia, and pretty much the rest of the world! What we need the most these days is honest and competent leaders capable of wrestling with politics as well as with ethics and moral issues. Otherwise, we will not make it into the next stage of human civilization.

 Content

Chapter 1- Russia’s Near Abroad and US’s Interests:

The Russian-Georgian Conflict; U.S.-Georgia Relations; The Russian Invasion of Georgia: One Year Later; EU Report about the War; Russia and Ukraine; Red Famine: Stalin’s War on Ukraine (Book Review); Azerbaijan and U.S. Policy; Turmoil in the Republic of Moldova; Belarus: Still an Outpost of Tyranny.

Chapter 2- Moscow’s Challenges and Washington’s Answers:

Obama’s “Mission Impossible” to Moscow; Secretary Clinton’s Mission to Eastern Europe and the Caucasus; Biden’s Moldova Visit; Russia’s Geopolitical Challenge to NATO; German Chancellor Visits Moldova.

Chapter 3 -Post-Soviet Russian Federation:

Twenty Years since the Fall of the Berlin Wall; Moscow’s Victory Day Military Parade; The Dismemberment of the Soviet Union.

Chapter 4- Poland-A Special Case:

Intermarium: The Land between the Black and Baltic Sea (Book Review); Lech Walesa-Vaclav Havel: New Russian Revisionism; Katyn Tragedy Redux; The Lie of Katyn.

Chapter 5- Ukraine: New Challenges:

Putin Asserts Russia’s Regional Power; The EU’s Vilnius Summit; World Order (Book Review); Ukraine: A New Battleground; American Illusions and Russian Delusions.

Chapter 6- The United States Romania and Russia:

In Europe’s Shadow (Book Review); U.S. and Romania: Security and Mutual Interests; Russia’s Opposition to U.S. Missile Defense in Romania; Moldova: Between Russia and the West; Fixing a U.S. Diplomatic Gaffe; EU Enlargement, Russia and U.S. Policy.

Chapter 7- New Russian Maneuvers and Policies:

Putin’s Ukraine Policy is Dividing Europe; The Black Sea: New Battleground between Russia and NATO; Russia, NATO and the New Ukrainian Defense Policy; Putin Meddling in Eastern Europe and the Middle East; The Kurds and the Question of ‘Kurdistan;’ Is Turkey Changing Sides? Waiting for Russia’s Next Move; New Russian Maneuvers.   

Chapter 8- Europe’s Never-Ending Struggle:

Heart of Europe: A History of the Holy Roman Empire (Book Review); Europe’s New Challenge: Wake Up or Break Apart! Ethnic Fragmentation: The Case of Catalonia; Squeezing the Buffer Zone between NATO and Russia; Eastern Europe: An Area Divided; A Little Publicized Meeting; Is Romania Approaching a Second Revolution?

Chapter 9- Recent American Policy and Attitudes:

Obama’s Multicultural America and the Transformation of a Nation; Facing a Crucial Election Year: Will Traditional Values Survive?; President Trump’s Foreign Policy: The Case of Eastern Europe; Trump Hosts Romania’s President; Thoughts at the End of an Important Year; America’s Policy in Eastern Europe: U.S. Romanian Common Interests

Chapter 10- America and the Process of Globalization:

About Globalization; Globalization and the American Patriots; Globalization: The Process; The Current Refugee Crisis in Europe; America and Brexit; U.S. and the World

Chapter XI – Global Problems in a New Global World:

A World in Disarray: American Foreign Policy and the Crisis of the Old Order; Winning the Third World: Sino-American Rivalry During the Cold War; A.I. Super Power: China, Silicon Valley, and the New World Order (Critical Book Reviews).