Eastern Europe

The bridge connecting Estonia with Russia is seen in Narva, Estonia, on July 24, 2024.
Eastern Europe

In Estonia’s border town, Russian-speaking majority enjoys NATO’s shield, remains mute on Russia’s threat

by Maria Yeryoma

NARVA, Estonia — On both sides of the Narva River, fishermen stand knee-deep in the water between two medieval castles just 101 meters apart. Above them, the flags mark where NATO ends and Russia begins. For years, experts have been warning of the so-called "Narva scenario" — a plan in which Russia might attempt to grab an Estonian border city using its old tune, "protecting the Russian-speaking population." Following Europe's inability to handle Russia's now recurring drone incursions, the mo

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Beyond Hungary: New obstacles emerge in Ukraine's EU membership push

Some hoped that with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban leaving office on May 9, Ukraine's path to EU membership would become much smoother. Instead, problems of substance have risen to the surface, which could prove difficult for Kyiv to fully address. Pressure is rising in Brussels to find a way to reach an agreement on opening so-called "enlargement clusters" by the next meeting of EU leaders on June 18. National ambassadors have raised the concern that there might not be sufficient progr

Antonio Costa (L), President Volodymyr Zelensky (C), and Ursula von der Leyen (R), in Brussels, Belgium, on March 6, 2025.

Understanding Ukraine's new corruption crisis — next KI Insights monthly briefing

Ukraine's anti-corruption institutions are facing their most consequential test since the full-scale invasion. What began in November 2025 as NABU's Operation Midas, a sprawling $100 million kickback scheme at state nuclear energy company Energoatom, has since evolved into Ukraine's largest corruption scandal of the wartime period, drawing in former ministers, the ex-chief of staff to President Zelensky, and now the current Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council. NABU wiretap tr

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