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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Contrary to Expectations, US-Russian Relations Deteriorate Under President Trump

Thomas Graham January 18, 2018 RM Exclusives
One might think the relationship has nowhere to go but up. But the omens suggest otherwise, that relations will continue to deteriorate, as Trump begins his second year in office.
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The Russification of US Deterrence Policy

Nikolai Sokov December 25, 2017 Recommended Reads
The United States now shares the same concerns as Russia. This might be good news or bad news, depending on political decisions.
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New US Security Strategy Is a Clear Bureaucratic Victory for the ‘Russia Skeptics.’ Has the President Read It?

Nikolas K. Gvosdev December 21, 2017 RM Exclusives
Does the National Security Strategy end any chance of substantive improvements in the U.S.-Russia relationship for the near future? Or will the dissonance between Trump's position on Russia and that of his security establishment lead to unpredictable fallout?
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The Balkans Between Russia and the West

Dimitar Bechev November 22, 2017 RM Exclusives
Russia and the West are not locked in a life-and-death battle over the Balkans. The region is just a vulnerable periphery where Moscow can exert influence as part of a broader contest with the U.S and the EU.
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Latest US-Russian Effort on Syria: Good for Preventing Accidents, So-So for Everything Else

Nikolas K. Gvosdev November 15, 2017 RM Exclusives
Trump and Putin’s joint statement at the APEC summit masks deep divisions between Moscow and Washington over how to resolve the conflict.
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US Response to Russia Treaty Violation Plays into Moscow's Hands

Steven Pifer November 15, 2017 Recommended Reads
The proposal to develop U.S. intermediate-range missiles would not just further jeopardize the INF Treaty; it is both impracticable and opens the door for Russia to deploy such missiles without fear.
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At Valdai Putin Treats Trump Respectfully

Angela Stent October 26, 2017
In his searing critique of U.S. foreign policy delivered at the Valdai Club, the Russian president notably spared Donald Trump.
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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.
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Russian Nuclear Forces: Buildup or Modernization?

Hans M. Kristensen September 14, 2017 RM Exclusives
Russia is not increasing its nuclear arsenal, though some commentators keep saying it is. What's important, however, is to monitor how Russia is modernizing its strategic nuclear forces.
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Russian Military Buildup in the West: Fact Versus Fiction

Michael Kofman September 07, 2017 RM Exclusives
Until 2014 Russia was largely cutting the number of troops on NATO's borders to move them elsewhere. The war with Ukraine changed that, reawakening Moscow to the possibility of a large-scale war on its western front.
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America and Russia: Back to Basics

Graham Allison August 14, 2017 Recommended Reads
Cold War tenets may be the Trump administration's best hope to keep Americans safe.
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Open Letter to President Donald Trump and President Vladimir Putin

Des Browne, Wolfgang Ischinger, Igor Ivanov and Sam Nunn June 29, 2017 Partner Posts
Four influential foreign-policy thinkers—former senior officials from Germany, Russia, the UK and the U.S.—call on Moscow and Washington to “stop the downward spiral in relations" and work together on areas of existential common interest.
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