Valdai Club

The first steps of US President Donald Trump have provoked a wave of comments, assumptions and guesses. However, according to Konstantin Khudoley, professor at the Faculty of International Relations at St. Petersburg State University, Trump’s policy, which undoubtedly differs from those of his predecessors, is not as unpredictable as it may seem and contains significant elements of continuity.

The most optimistic trend of the past year has of course been the further development of BRICS. Russia made full use of its chairmanship both to promote its vision of future development in the world and to expand and strengthen its international ties, which once again demonstrated the failure of attempts by unfriendly countries to isolate Russia in the international arena, Konstantin Khudoley writes.

The results of the parliamentary elections in the United Kingdom on July 4, 2024, were not something unexpected, says Konstantin Khudoley, head of the Department of European Studies at the Faculty of International Relations at St. Petersburg State University.

Recently, increasingly alarming news has been coming from Northeast Asia. The situation on the Korean Peninsula is escalating again — Pyongyang and Seoul are exchanging threatening statements and demonstrating their determination in every possible way, including the firing of artillery in the sea in the immediate vicinity of the demarcation line. Konstantin Khudoley, professor at the Faculty of International Relations of St. Petersburg State University, believes that while the situation on the Korean Peninsula may be approaching the boiling point, it is unlikely that either side will cross the proverbial red line and spark another military conflict near the borders of the Russian Federation.

Within a short period of time, the situation in the Baltic Sea region has changed radically, writes Konstantin Khudoley, head of the Department of European Studies at the Faculty of International Relations of St. Petersburg State University.

The fact that there have been five prime ministers in the UK over the past six years, including three in the past two months, confirms that there are serious problems with the country, writes Konstantin Khudolei, head of the Department of European Studies at the Faculty of International Relations at St. Petersburg State University.

The initial stage of confrontation between Russia and the West is a process of consolidating the positions of both opposing sides. One of its most obvious manifestations is the beginning of Finland and Sweden joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, writes Konstantin Khudoley, professor at the Faculty of International Relations at St. Petersburg State University.

The Afghan crisis is still on the front pages of the world media; politicians, diplomats, public figures and experts talk about it, and think tank conferences, multilateral negotiations and consultations are held. But this wave will soon subside, since the Afghan crisis is undoubtedly long and serious, but not of a global scale, writes Konstantin Khudoley, professor at the Faculty of International Relations at St. Petersburg State University.

Some intensification of Russian-American negotiations on the preparation of the meeting between presidents Vladimir Putin and Joe Biden provides an opportunity to once again analyse not only the current problems affecting Russian-American relations, but also raise the issue of giving them a more effective impetus in the future, corresponding to the realities of the 2020s, believes Konstantin Khudoley, professor at the Faculty of International Relations of St. Petersburg State University.