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The rise and fall of Mikheil Saakashvili

The Saakashvili saga exemplifies how easily one can stray from democratic promise to semi-authoritarian rabble rousing.

Mikheil Saakashvili

Is Ukraine on the brink of another Maidan?

A dangerous populist political game in Ukraine is threatening the stability of the government.

Georgian former President Mikheil Saakashvili flashes a victory sign after he was freed by his supporters in Kiev, Ukraine December 5, 2017. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY

Death and rebirth in contemporary Ukrainian journalism

Ukraine deserves to break out of the “sick man of Europe” mould, known primarily for the protracted war and corruption.

Mourning ceremony for killed journalist Pavel Sheremet in Kiev

Putin’s quest for glory at any cost

The doping scandal is the latest in a string of misadventures in Putin’s pursuit of Soviet-style greatness.

Putin speaks to athletes before his late-night meeting with the heads of Russia''s sports federations in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia [AP]

Bitter end for Kazakhstan’s sugar czar

The ignominious end of Rakhat Aliyev, Kazakhstan’s most feared man, heir apparent, sugar czar, fugitive.

File undated photo of Rakhat Aliyev

Boris Nemtsov’s last walk

Did Boris Nemtsov, the bogeyman of Russia’s rising nationalism, push his luck by provoking Putin repeatedly?

People gather at the site where Boris Nemtsov was recently murdered, in central Moscow

Is Putin going to war?

Ukraine stands on the precipice of war as pressure mounts on Putin, seen as ‘saviour’ of the Eastern Slavic world.

Policemen stand guard outside the burned trade union building in the southern Ukrainian city of Odessa [AFP]

New pawn in Putin’s game

By issuing ultimatums and then failing to follow up, Kiev has further emboldened the rabble-rousers.

Ukrainians carry anti-Russian placards during a march in Odessa, Ukraine [EPA]

Will the drumbeat lead to war?

Even without an armed conflict, Russia’s Crimean adventure has set it on a course of protracted collision with the West.

The political cost to Putin of waging war on a brotherly Slavic people would be too high, writes Zalmayev [EPA]