Janek Lasocki

Janek Lasocki writes about eastern Europe and the former USSR. He was formerly Advocacy Coordinator at the European Council on Foreign Relations. You can follow him on Twitter @JanekLasocki.

How Zelenskyy can challenge Ukraine's media magnates

The Ukrainian president has promised to curb the power of the pro-Russian oligarchs who control Ukraine’s leading TV channels, but is it all talk?

By Janek Lasocki

/ 30 Mar 2021

How Zelenskyy can challenge Ukraine's media magnates

Counting down to Russia’s 2016 Duma Elections

As Russia gears up for a parliamentary elections this autumn, how can the country's embattled opposition and civil society offer a real contest to the Kremlin's "imitation democracy"?

By Janek Lasocki

/ 17 May 2016

Whatever happened to (Euro) Maidan

For almost a year, Ukraine has refused to leave the international headlines. But little attention has been paid to what has been happening in Kyiv.

By Janek Lasocki

/ 6 Oct 2014

The challenges for Ukraine’s presidential election

On Sunday 25 May, President Putin permitting, 36.5 million voters will go to the polls in Ukraine to vote for a successor to President Viktor Yanukovych, ousted after three months of protests, and over 100 dead

By Janek Lasocki

/ 24 Mar 2014

Football & politics: the legacy of Euro 2012 in Ukraine

Ahead of the Euro 2012 football championships, media attention on political scandal and excessive profiteering has undermined Ukrainian attempts to raise prestige in the eyes of the world. Janek Lasocki and Łukasz Jasina wonder if the hosts will eventually be able to defy critics and secure a posi

By Janek Lasocki and Łukasz Jasina

/ 18 May 2012

A turbulent twelve months in Belarus

This Monday marked a year since Belarusians staged a peaceful protest (brutally suppressed) against rigged presidential elections. Although the regime has not been overturned, and the economy has managed to teeter on collapse without fully imploding, it is clear that Belarusian politics are now in

By Janek Lasocki

/ 21 Dec 2011

Springtime for Lukashenka?

Effective opposition in Belarus has traditionally been limited by a limited sense of nationhood, a deeply controlled society and a social contract that exchanges rights for “stability”. The country’s deepening financial crisis undermines all three of these pillars. Could it be that the time for ch

By Janek Lasocki

/ 29 Jun 2011