Analysis

This listing contains all the analytical materials posted on the Russia Matters website. These include: RM Exclusives, commissioned by Russia Matters exclusively for this website; Recommended Reads, deemed particularly noteworthy by our editorial team; Partner Posts, originally published by our partners elsewhere; and Future Policy Leaders, pieces by promising young scholars and policy thinkers. Content can be filtered by genre and subject-specific criteria and is updated often. Gradually we will be adding older Recommended Reads and Partner Posts dating back as far as 2011.
article

Want a Green Future? Let Nord Stream Go.

Stephen G. Gross May 06, 2021 Recommended Reads
U.S. sanctions against Germany over Nord Stream 2 would undermine diplomatic climate change efforts.
article

Experts on Putin: 20 Years in Power

RM Staff August 07, 2019 RM Exclusives
Some of America’s best-informed experts on Russia offer a wealth of insights into President Vladimir Putin’s rule, objectives, historical context and personality.
article

Russia May Have Violated the INF Treaty. Here's How the United States Appears to Have Done the Same.

Theodore A. Postol February 07, 2019
The death of INF involved violations on both sides, as Russia developed a cruise missile that allegedly broke weapon range rules while the U.S. built missile interception facilities in Eastern Europe with defense and attack dual-capability.
article

Killing the INF Treaty was a Gift to Russia

Jon Wolfsthal February 07, 2019
Withdrawing now from the INF Treaty is a fundamental mistake of the Trump presidency, absolving Russia of its arms violations and removing the most effective tool for decreasing the likelihood of nuclear crisis.
article

Mixed Messages on Trump’s Missile Defense Review

Matt Korda and Hans M. Kristensen January 17, 2019 Recommended Reads
Despite the document’s assertion that “Missile Defenses are Stabilizing,” the Missile Defense Review promotes a posture that is anything but.
article

Putin Deepens Confusion About Russian Nuclear Policy

Abigail Stowe-Thurston, Matt Korda and Hans M. Kristensen October 25, 2018 RM Exclusives
Rather than strengthening deterrence, ambiguity surrounding U.S. and Russian nuclear thresholds is causing both sides to make dangerous assumptions about one another’s intentions.
article

Russian Studies Is Thriving, Not Dying

Timothy Frye October 03, 2017 Recommended Reads
“Russian studies is dying” has become a common assertion. However, in the field of political science, this doesn't seem to be the case.
podcast

From the Tsardom of Muscovy to Nuclear Cooperation: Podcasts on Russia

Monterey Summer Symposium on Russia June 19, 2017 Partner Posts
Throughout the summer, the Monterey Summer Symposium on Russia will host expert lectures and seminars on a variety of topics ranging from history and art to diplomacy and nonproliferation. As the symposium progresses, these lectures will be made available as podcasts.
article

5 Conservative Principles for Dealing With Russia

William Tobey April 12, 2017 Partner Posts
Reestablishing a rough consensus on principles to guide American relations with Russia is a high foreign policy priority.
article

Russia, Trump and a New Détente: Fixing US-Russian Relations

Robert David English March 10, 2017 Recommended Reads
Demonizing Russia only widens the gulf of U.S.-Russian misunderstanding and encourages dangerous misconceptions.
article

Vladimir Putin's Dicey Dilemma

Graham Allison November 11, 2014 Recommended Reads
After Russia's aggression against Ukraine, Washington crafted a narrative: Russia is a loser that doesn’t matter anymore. How much of that story is true? And what genuine challenges underlie it?
article

When All You Have Is a Hammer: Strategic Nuclear Forces and the Ukraine Crisis

Andrew Szarejko and Kingston Reif May 09, 2014
While an American response is needed to Russian aggression in Ukraine, it should not include the expansion or acceleration of nuclear facilities in Central and Eastern Europe.