<p>Eurasia is the world&rsquo;s most expansive region. It connects the East to the West, forming a land bridge that borders Europe, the Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and South Asia. Forming the borders of this massive tract of land are the Northern European Plain, the Carpathian Mountains, the Southern Caucasus Mountains, the Tien Shan Mountains and Siberia. At the heart of Eurasia is Russia, a country that throughout history has tried, to varying degrees of success, to extend its influence to Eurasia&rsquo;s farthest reaches &mdash; a strategy meant to insulate it from outside powers. But this strategy necessarily creates conflict throughout Russia&rsquo;s borderlands, putting Eurasia a near constant state of instability.</p>

Eurasia connects the East to the West, forming a land bridge that borders Europe, the Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and South Asia. 

Eurasia

Armenia

Tajikistan

Turkmenistan

Ukraine

Uzbekistan

Azerbaijan

Georgia

Belarus

Kazakhstan

Kyrgyzstan

Russia

Moldova

The Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict

Cyber

The Ukraine Conflict

The Politics of Pipelines

The New Silk Road

Commodities: A Cautionary Tale

A Crude Recovery

The Second Space Race

Echoes of the Cold War

Russia's Internal Struggle

The Fight for Russia’s Borderlands

Moscow Looks to the East

Instability in Central Asia

Assessments

Iran

Syria

Turkey

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Syria's interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, hold a meeting at the Grand Kremlin Palace in Moscow on Oct.15, 2025. 

Military & Security

Politics

Syria's outreach to Russia could lead to diversified economic and security ties, help de-escalate tensions between Russia and Turkey, and eventually facilitate small steps toward Syria's rapprochement with Iran.

Syria-Russia Reapproachment Reinforces Damascus's Non-Confrontationalism

United States

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (L) attends a lunch meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump (R) at the White House on Oct. 17, 2025, in Washington, D.C. 

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

Recent statements by U.S. President Donald Trump suggest a significant U.S. pivot toward a negotiated settlement in Ukraine that prioritizes freezing the conflict and may involve territorial concessions favorable to Moscow.

Trump Signals Shift Toward Russian Position on Ukraine Ahead of Putin Meeting

Israel

Palestinian Territories

Australia

U.S. President Donald Trump (R) and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Aug. 15, 2025, at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska. Delegations from the United States and Russia, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergey Lavrov, respectively, will meet this week to resume conversations about their countries' bilateral relationship and the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Israel-Hamas Conflict

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: U.S. and Russian Delegations Meet, a Still-Fragile Hamas-Israel Ceasefire 

Russian flag on a cracked wall, illustrating an economic decline with a downward arrow. 

Economics

Energy

Despite high consumer confidence, underlying economic indicators show a significant contraction in non-defense industrial production, slowing consumption and falling investment, signaling that the Kremlin's war economy is steadily deteriorating.

Russia's War Economy Is Faltering

Japan

France

The assembly hall of the Syrian parliament Oct. 1 in Damascus. An Oct. 5 indirect election for parliament will mark the first time Syrians have had an electoral say in their government since the 1960s.

The Weekly Rundown: Japan's Election, Syria's Political Transition

Snapshots

Europe

Moldovan President Maia Sandu arrives to hold a press conference in Chisinau on Sept. 29, 2025, after her pro-EU party secured a victory in parliamentary elections. 

Despite a clear win for the pro-EU Action and Solidarity in the Sept. 28 parliamentary election, Moldova's path to EU accession remains fraught with obstacles, including the unresolved Transdniestria conflict, entrenched corruption and the need for politically sensitive judicial reforms.

Even With PAS Victory, Moldova's Road to EU Membership Remains Long

Media

Sub-Saharan Africa

Americas

Middle East and North Africa

Asia-Pacific

South Asia

Forecast Webcast

Join our analysts for this webcast recording exploring key topics identified in RANE's 2025 Fourth-Quarter Forecast.

2025 Fourth-Quarter Forecast Webcast

U.S.-China Relations

China

The U.N. Security Council holds a meeting on Iran at the U.N. headquarters in New York City, New York, on Sept. 19, 2025. 

The increased isolation will make Iran more reliant on China and Russia, while the added economic strain could fuel domestic protests and empower Iranian hard-liners calling for more aggressive action against the West.

U.N. Sanctions Snapback: What's Next for Iran?

U.S.-Iran Relations

A Polish-made FlyEye V3.0 drone is displayed during the Iron Defender-25 media day on Sept. 18, 2025, in Nowa Deba, Poland. 

European efforts to fast-track a sophisticated anti-drone system will unlock major contracts for defense firms, but the vast scale of the project will leave Europe exposed to Russian provocations for years.

EU 'Drone Wall' Plans Will Take Years To Materialize, Leaving Continent Vulnerable in the Meantime

The fourth quarter will bring shifting trade tactics, evolving wars, and pivotal elections and flashpoints worldwide that will test governments’ stability and market confidence.

2025 Fourth-Quarter Forecast: An Excerpt

The United States and the European Union imposed sweeping new sanctions on Russia's energy sector, targeting its two largest oil companies, Rosneft and Lukoil, and banning Russian liquefied natural gas imports to Europe by 2027, Reuters reported on Oct. 23. 

U.S., EU, Russia: New Energy Sanctions Tighten Pressure on Moscow but Highlight the Limits of Economic Warfare

The United States announced new sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil, Russia's two largest oil companies, and several of their subsidiaries as part of efforts to pressure Moscow to end its war in Ukraine, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 22.

U.S., Russia: U.S. Sanctions Rosneft and Lukoil, Increasing Pressure on Russia's Energy Revenues

Russian President Vladimir Putin personally oversaw Russia's large-scale annual readiness test of its strategic nuclear triad, involving land, sea and air-based launches, Reuters reported on Oct. 22.

Russia, Ukraine: Putin Flexes Nuclear Muscle as Ground Offensive Falters

Russia's military leadership proposed a new law that would allow volunteer reservists to help protect energy plants, railways and other vital infrastructure within their home regions from Ukrainian drone attacks, Interfax reported on Oct. 22.

Russia: Volunteer Reservists To Guard Key Infrastructure From Drone Attacks

The U.S. Trump administration is supporting Cove Kaz Capital Group's bid to develop two of Kazakhstan's largest tungsten deposits, facilitating negotiations with the sovereign wealth fund Samruk-Kazyna and exploring financing through the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation and Export-Import Bank, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 21. 

Kazakhstan, U.S.: Trump Team's Tungsten Push Invites U.S. Investment, Risks Chinese Ire

The United States stopped work on facilitating a summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Politico reported on Oct. 21, citing a U.S. official given anonymity to speak on the matter.

Russia, U.S.: White House Official Says Putin-Trump Summit on Hold

China and Russia on Oct. 18 signed an agreement to cooperate on expanding shipping in the Northern Sea Route that runs along Russia's northern shore, bne IntelliNews reported on Oct. 20.

China, Russia: Deal Reached To Expand Arctic Shipping Route

Kazakhstan's Ministry of Energy said oil and gas production at the Karachaganak oil and gas field was cut by 25%-30% after Ukraine's Oct. 19 drone strike on Russia's Orenburg gas processing plant halted gas intake from the site, Reuters reported on Oct. 20.

Kazakhstan, Russia: Orenburg Strike Forces Output Cuts at Karachaganak, Raising Domestic Stability Risks

Eurasia

SITUATION REPORTS

U.S., EU, Russia: New Energy Sanctions Tighten Pressure on Moscow but Highlight the Limits of Economic Warfare

U.S., Russia: U.S. Sanctions Rosneft and Lukoil, Increasing Pressure on Russia's Energy Revenues

Russia, Ukraine: Putin Flexes Nuclear Muscle as Ground Offensive Falters

Russia: Volunteer Reservists To Guard Key Infrastructure From Drone Attacks

Kazakhstan, U.S.: Trump Team's Tungsten Push Invites U.S. Investment, Risks Chinese Ire

Russia, U.S.: White House Official Says Putin-Trump Summit on Hold

China, Russia: Deal Reached To Expand Arctic Shipping Route

Kazakhstan, Russia: Orenburg Strike Forces Output Cuts at Karachaganak, Raising Domestic Stability Risks

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