Recently, the international security situation has changed significantly. Mutual trust between states has declined sharply. Policy makers of states and international organisations often no longer know where they stand. In 2016, the Oxford Dictionary proclaimed ‘post truth’ the word of the year.1 In …

This second part of the diptych on the art of deception revisited is about Russian deception and the way it was applied during the annexation of Crimea in 2014. During the annexation, armed soldiers dressed in dark green uniforms without insignias turned up and took control of the Ukrainian peninsula. …

Following Russia’s annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the conflict in the southeast region of Ukraine, NATO deployed four battlegroups to Poland and the Baltic States. The Netherlands contributes troops to the battlegroup in Lithuania, which considers itself a ‘front state’ against the Russian Federation. …

Since Russia occupied Crimea in March 2014, the Western world has been searching for explanations how this operation was conducted and why it came as a surprise for many military and international relations subject matter experts. The Western media followed by NATO called the Russian activities a form …

This dissertation is focused on the relations between the European Union and the Russian Federation in light of the recent developments in Ukraine. The research provides evidence on the relations between these parties, keeping the dissolution of the Soviet Union in mind. It looks at various theories …

This thesis describes the history of the Soviet Union, the enlargement of the EU and NATO and the possible factors that have influenced Russia’s decision to commit the invasion of Georgia in 2008 and to annex the Crimea in 2014. The central question of the research compares the two responses from the …

This research analyses the situation of the Russian minority in Lithuania. Lithuania is a post-soviet country and a neighbour of the Russian Federation that has been feeling threats due to Russia´s actions in Ukraine and its overall policies for its near abroad and compatriots. As a country with a Russian …

Even before the current issue in Ukraine started, the country had to choose between the European Union and the Russian Federation. Russia wanted Ukraine in its own union, and Europe wanted closer cooperation with Ukraine in the form of an agreement. The European Union does not have any perspective for …