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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Why Trump Is Right on Russia

Anatol Lieven February 14, 2017 Recommended Reads
Recent policy failures suggest that cooperation with Russia is unavoidable.
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The Ukraine-Russia Conflict: A Way Forward

Matthew Rojansky February 01, 2017 Recommended Reads
While the likelihood of the conflict’s resolution is low, Washington needs to keep aware of opportunities for resolution due to what is at stake: U.S. interests, relations with Russia and Europe and global security.
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What Makes Putin Tick, and What the West Should Do

Fiona Hill and Clifford G. Gaddy January 13, 2017 Recommended Reads
The authors, having written an exhaustive book examining who Vladimir Putin is and what motivates him, offer insights into how Western leaders can deal with him.
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Inside Russia's New Foreign Policy Master Plan

Areg Galstyan and Sergey Melkonyan January 04, 2017 Partner Posts
The first thing that catches one's attention in Russia’s new Foreign Policy Concept, updated for the first time in three years, is Russia’s new political status as a major center of influence in the international arena.
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A Strategic Response to the Russian Hacking Affair

Rolf Mowatt-Larssen December 22, 2016 RM Exclusives
The response to Russia’s alleged hacking must not be hasty. The whole affair may even help craft some much needed rules of the cyber game—but only if we keep a realistic view of Russia’s perspective.
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Russia’s Role in the US Elections: The Case for Caution

George Beebe December 16, 2016
Despite Moscow’s clear preference for the Republican presidential candidate and forensic data traceable back to Russia, the U.S. must act with caution in order to avoid falling into the same traps it found itself in over a decade ago.
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Putin Didn't Undermine the Election—We Did

Katrina vanden Heuvel November 29, 2016
Anything Russia may have done to discredit the legitimacy of U.S. democracy and presidential elections pales in comparison to the damage America itself has done.
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A Tale of Two Statues: Putin, Stalin and Russia's Bloody Past

Alexander Baunov November 07, 2016 Recommended Reads
Many Russians want a ruler who shows kindness to the masses and a far less forgiving attitude toward elites; Putin's style of rule doesn't quite fit that model.
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'You Americans Never Learn': How Valdai Showcased Putin's Terms for US-Russia Cooperation

Andrew Kuchins October 28, 2016 Partner Posts
Putin’s broad message seemed to be that, while deeply frustrated by U.S. policies that seemingly defy Russian interests, Moscow will want to work with and engage with the incoming administration.
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What Does Putin Want?

Gerald F. Hyman October 05, 2016 Recommended Reads
The next administration's U.S. policy towards Russia must begin with Putin's two overriding personal objectives: reasserting Russian international power and securing his own domestic power.
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The Cold War Is Over. The Cyber War Has Begun.

David Ignatius September 16, 2016 Recommended Reads
The United States must develop a new cybersecurity strategy to defend against an increasingly aggressive Russia.
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How to Negotiate With Putin on Anything

James Stavridis September 14, 2016 Recommended Reads
Former NATO supreme allied commander advises the United States to develop new strategies in approaching negotiations with Russia.