The situation in Ukraine will continue to unravel unless Russia comes to planned diplomatic talks in Geneva this week with options for defusing the crisis, says expert Steven Pifer.

A decisive U.S. response to Russian provocation in Ukraine could create new opportunities for the United States to make headway on a number of fronts in the Middle East, says expert Dennis Ross.

Ukraine faces descent into prolonged civil conflict unless a political deal can be forged among ruling party moderates, oligarchs, and opposition leaders, says expert Adrian Karatnycky.

Russia is more concerned with guarding its strategic interests in Syria than sustaining the rule of Assad, who eventually may overburden the Kremlin, says expert Michael Young.

President Obama’s cancelled state visit to Moscow next month is another indication that the so-called U.S.-Russia reset has derailed, says CFR’s Stephen Sestanovich.