ConflictBarometer_2016

EUROPE
October 14. On November 21, hundreds of nationalists, including
Right Sector, Azov, and other militants, burned tires,
smashed windows, and threw smoke pellets on the Independence
Square of the capital Kiev, eponymous oblast, to commemorate
the 2014 Maidan protests. Furthermore, more than
1,000 Azov members marched through the streets of Kharkiv,
eponymous oblast, shouting ''glory to Ukraine” and ''death to
enemies” on December 12.
Right-wing militants repeatedly attacked members of the
LGBT community and refugees throughout the year. During
the Equality Festival in Lviv, eponymous oblast, on March
19, around 200 far-right activists harassed 70 participants by
shouting ''kill, kill, kill” and throwing stones at the police bus
that was sent to evacuate the latter. Subsequently, Human
Rights First leader Shawn Gaylord criticized the government's
lack of protection for the LGBT community. Also in mid-March,
residents of Yahotyn, Kiev oblast, including Azov, Right Sector,
and Svoboda militants, threw eggs at Ukrainian State Migration
Service officers as well as UN representatives and human
rights activists during the opening ceremony of a refugee
centre. On June 12, Right Sector and other right-wing activists
issued ''bloodbath” threats to participants of the LGBT event
KyivPride. On October 18, 50 nationalists, including Azov and
Right Sector, injured two participants of an LGBT film event in
Chernivtsi, Chernivtsi oblast. afo
UNITED KINGDOM (SCOTTISH NATIONALISTS /
SCOTLAND)
Intensity: 1 | Change: | Start: 2007
Conflict parties:
Conflict items:
SNP, Scottish regional government vs.
government
secession
The non-violent crisis between the Scottish regional government,
formed by the Scottish National Party (SNP), and the
British government over the secession of Scotland from the
United Kingdom (UK) de-escalated to a dispute. The conflict
mainly revolved around the referendum regarding the leave
of the UK from the EU, the so-called Brexit.
The SNP won the regional elections on May 4, gaining 63
of the 129 seats in the Scottish Parliament. After SNP chairwoman
Nicola Sturgeon had rejected a coalition on May 6, the
SNP formed a minority government. Concerning the Brexit
Referendum in June, Sturgeon had stated repeatedly that a
pro-Brexit vote would trigger a new Independence referendum.
After the pro-Brexit decision, Sturgeon spoke of a ''democratic
outrage” and raised the possibility of a second referendum.
On July 15, newly elected PM Theresa May, leader of the
Conservative Party, visited Scotland and called for unity in
the Brexit talks. Sturgeon, however, stated that remaining in
the European Single Market would be a crucial interest for
Scotland. Consequently, Sturgeon announced a second referendum
to be held in the next two years at the annual SNP
meeting in the Scottish city of Glasgow on October 13, and
introduced a draft bill for the referendum one week later.
Both the UK Labour Party and the government criticized this
immediately.
In Scotland, secessionist and anti-Brexit groups staged several
protests. Moreover, a dozen activists maintained the
pro-Independence protest camp in front of the Scottish Parliament.
After the protesters had lost a court appeal in late October,
court officers evicted the camp on November 5. On December
17, a panel of civil judges ordered the campers to pay a
fine of approx. USD 130,500. csc
USA, EU ET AL. – RUSSIA
Intensity: 2 | Change: | Start: 2007
Conflict parties:
Conflict items:
USA, EU et al. vs. Russia
system/ideology, international power
The non-violent crisis over ideology and international power
between the USA, EU, and several other states, including
Canada and Norway, on the one hand, and Russia, on the other
hand, continued.
In the course of the year, the US, the EU, especially the UK,
France, and Germany, and Canada accused Russia of provoking
a ''new cold war” with rhetoric and deterring strategies,
and vice versa. However, both sides repeatedly claimed that
they did not want an escalation.
On several occasions, the Russian Armed Forces carried out
military manoeuvres. For instance, on April 13, a Russian Su-
24 fighter jet simulated attacks against the US Navy destroyer
USS Donald Cook. Five days later, on April 18, a Russian
fighter jet intercepted a US RC135U spy plane that operated
in international airspace. Furthermore, Russia violated the
airspace of NATO member states repeatedly over the course
of the year, for example in Estonia on May 5 [→ Russia – Estonia].
Regarding the Russian intervention in Crimea, Ukraine,
the EU continued sanctions against Russia, such as travel bans
and financial account suspensions as well as on economic relations
[→ Russia-Ukraine (Crimea)]. On July 1, the EU Council
decided to prolong the economic sanctions until 2017, while
Russia responded with a continuation of its ban on EU's agricultural
products. Because of the unchanged situation in the
Ukraine, the EU extended its sanctions again on December
15. Throughout the year, NATO positioned various defence
systems in and deployed troops to Eastern Europe, further
increasing the tensions between the two sides. On May 10,
NATO stationed a SM-2 missile defence system at Deveselu
military airport, Romania.
A few days later, NATO held a series of interlinked manoeuvres,
''Dragoon Ride II” from May 31 to June 22, ''Saber Strike
16” from May 22 to June 22, and ''Anaconda 2016” from June
7 to 16. The NATO member states staged ''Anaconda 2016,”
which involved 31,000 troops and numerous ground and air
based weapon systems from 24 countries, as a reaction to a
Russian maneuver in 2015 that had involved 95,000 troops.
However, Dmitry Peskov, spokesperson of the Russian presi-
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