Until very recently Russia was considered by many foreign companies a somewhat difficult but promising country for investment, a “land of opportunity” that perhaps necessarily came with a hefty dose of a “riddle wrapped in a mystery inside of an enigma”. The difficulty was stemming primarily from Russia’s heavy-handed bureaucracy. Stories of corrupt practices, politically motivated court decisions, and questionable tax authorities’ tactics abounded.

On April 7, 2014, ISET hosted Dr. Aleksandr Grigoryan from the American University of Armenia, who presented his paper “Who else emigrates from Armenia? Evidence from intentions”. The paper addressed two main questions: what influences decision-making as to whether to migrate? What was the main trend during recent years?

The objective of the project was to produce a pilot RIA on the draft Code on Spatial Planning and Construction in order for the regulators to make an informed decision.The project included a training phase to build the capacity of ISET Policy Institute (and two other Georgian organizations) to perform Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA). The ISET-PI team performed a pilot RIA on the draft Spatial Planning and Construction code.

When Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovich decided not to sign the association agreement with the European Union and instead opted for a Russian package of long-term economic support, many Ukrainians perceived this not to be a purely economic decision. Rather, they feared this to be a renunciation of Western cultural and political values, and – to put it mildly – were not happy about this development.

When Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovich decided not to sign the association agreement with the European Union and instead opted for a Russian package of long-term economic support, many Ukrainians perceived this not to be a purely economic decision. Rather, they feared this to be a renunciation of Western cultural and political values, and – to put it mildly – were not happy about this development.