Blog

Levada Poll Shows Russian Public Opinion Toward West Is Thawing

Simon Saradzhyan February 21, 2020
Russians may be feeling more warmly about the West as a whole, but attitudes toward the U.S. are still more negative than positive.
News

WH Source: US Might Extend New START; Levada: 67% Russians Want West To Be Partner; S. Arabia Considering Break From Oil Pact With Russia

February 21, 2020
The source claims extending New START would give more time to include China in an arms control deal; share of Russians who view the West as an enemy/competitor declined to 19 percent since June 2018; and much more in our weekly news round-up.
Analysis

US Embrace of Great Power Competition Also Means Contending With Spheres of Influence

Paul Saunders February 13, 2020 RM Exclusives
Failing to discuss and develop strategies and policies that accept and manage spheres of influence could prove quite costly for the U.S.—indeed, it already has.
Blog
Levada Poll Shows Russian Public Opinion Toward West Is Thawing
February 21, 2020
News
WH Source: US Might Extend New START; Levada: 67% Russians Want West To Be Partner; S. Arabia Considering Break From Oil Pact With Russia
February 21, 2020
Analysis
US Embrace of Great Power Competition Also Means Contending With Spheres of Influence
February 13, 2020
RM Staff Picks
Analysis

Pompeo’s Visit Lets Post-Soviet States Leverage US Backing Against Russia, China, But Real Support Remains Limited

Nikolas Gvosdev
American policies designed to challenge Russian dominance in Eurasia have either proceeded as a result of autopilot within the bureaucracy or because Congress has imposed them via veto-proof majorities.
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Analysis

2020 US Presidential Candidates on Russia: What Have They Said So Far?

Daniel Shapiro, Thomas Schaffner and Angelina Flood
Updated! With the primaries underway, it is worth remembering what the candidates have said about their would-be Russia policies if elected. (Originally published May 23, 2019.)
Read More
Blog

This Week in History: The US Satellite Launch That Didn’t Start a Nuclear War With Russia

RM Staff
While some close calls genuinely brought Moscow and Washington to the brink of war, Jan. 25 marked the 25th anniversary of an incident whose danger level the two sides viewed quite differently.
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Analysis

Military Assets in the Arctic: A Russia-West Correlation of Forces

Mathieu Boulegue
Should military tension in the region grow, overall military deployments would largely play in Moscow’s favor in the European Arctic and in Washington’s in the Pacific Arctic.
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Analysis

Is 'Escalate to Deescalate' Part of Russia’s Nuclear Toolbox?

Kevin Ryan
Russia's political leaders deny the existence of a supposedly new plan to use limited nuclear strikes in a local/regional conflict to shock an adversary into suing for peace. Has the U.S. misunderstood Russian intentions and plans?
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Blog

Putin Signals Intention to Continue Steering Russia Beyond 2024, but Will He Solve Country’s Structural Problems?

Simon Saradzhyan
Whatever new title he chooses in 2024, Putin will need to address Russia's structural socio-economic problems or continue to confront the reality that Russia remains too far behind the U.S. and China economically and demographically to be a true peer...
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Analysis

Angela Stent on Russia: Insights and Recommendations

RM Staff
One of the West’s leading experts on Russia offers perspectives from a distinguished career in academia and government.
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Analysis

Fiona Hill on Russia: Insights and Recommendations

RM Staff
The National Security Council’s new senior director for European and Russian affairs has been producing scholarship, analysis and commentary on Russia for nearly 30 years. Get a sampling of it here.
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Blog

What Stops US and Russia From Stumbling Into War?

Simon Saradzhyan
Other than the fear of mutually assured destruction, what keeps the U.S. and Russia from stumbling into a war? Part of the answer lies in the bilateral and multilateral agreements specifically designed to prevent incidents that could escalate into a ...
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Blog

Putin Predictions of Yore: What the Pundits Thought 20 Years Ago

Thomas Schaffner
Twenty years ago this month, resigning Russian President Boris Yeltsin tapped Vladimir Putin, still relatively unknown outside of Russia, to be his successor. Westerners were left with one question: “Who is Mr. Putin?”
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