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.
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Russia’s Nuclear-Capable Missiles: A Question of Escalation Control

William Alberque March 15, 2024 Recommended Reads
Aspects of Moscow’s military strategy in Ukraine, including its deployment of dual-use missile systems, have offered some potential insights into its nuclear-weapons doctrine.
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Putin Returns Empty-Handed From Beijing

The Bell October 30, 2023
Despite much back-slapping about the Sino-Russian partnership, no major economic agreements were signed during Putin's recent trip to China.
Competing Views on Russia

William Burns on Russia

Daniel Shapiro and RM Staff September 19, 2023 RM Exclusives
What has the CIA director said on Russia? Check out our compilation for some of Burns' observations and policy ideas regarding Russia.
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Clues from Russian Views: Has the NATO Summit Become Music to Moscow’s Ears?

Mikael Pir-Budagyan and RM Staff July 14, 2023 RM Exclusives
A collection of Russian reactions to the Vilnius gathering
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A World Transformed and the Role of Intelligence

William J Burns July 01, 2023 Recommended Reads
'We are ... at an inflection point. The post-Cold War era is definitely over. Our task is to shape what comes next,' says CIA Director William Burns, as he delivers the 59th Ditchley Annual Lecture.
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Mutiny in Russia: What Happened, What’s Next and What To Be Thankful For

Simon Saradzhyan June 29, 2023 RM Exclusives
Deus ex machina or not, we should be thankful that this struggle for power within the Russian ruling elite did not acquire a nuclear dimension.
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How to End the War in Ukraine

Rajan Menon April 26, 2023 Recommended Reads
On Stopping the Fighting and Building the Peace
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Ukraine War Compels Bundeswehr to Refocus and Rebuild, but at Too Slow a Pace

Erich Vad April 20, 2023 RM Exclusives
In the past, Germany believed it could afford to neglect national and NATO defense because the threat situation was quite different. In retrospect, this was politically short-sighted.
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Nuclear Weapons in Belarus: History Repeats Itself

William Alberque March 31, 2023 RM Exclusives
Russia’s increasingly violent nuclear rhetoric and basing of nuclear weapons in Belarus are to be condemned. However, these developments do not alter the balance of power in Europe, nor do they significantly alter the risk of nuclear conflict.
Clues from Russian Views

The Importance of Being Russian: Can Belarus Survive the Kremlin’s War Against Ukraine?

Maxim Samorukov November 03, 2022 Recommended Reads
The war has left Belarus in a predicament, which boils down to depending on Russia for everything without enjoying the advantages of being part of Russia.
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Russia-Belarus Nuclear Sharing Would Mirror NATO’s—and Worsen Europe’s Security

Nikolai N. Sokov July 01, 2022 Recommended Reads
Putin’s decision to deploy dual-capable missiles in Belarus raises three obvious questions: Why? Why now? Is the decision reversible?
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The West Is Sleepwalking Into War in Ukraine

Stephen M. Walt February 23, 2022 Recommended Reads
It’s not easy to make sense of how the United States and Europe are responding to Russia’s aggression.
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