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.
podcast

Political Diary from Russia

Sean's Russia Blog March 13, 2020 Partner Posts
In this episode of Sean's Russia Blog, host and Eurasia expert Sean Guillory speaks with Ilya Budraitskis and Ilya Matveev, co-hosts of the podcast "Politicheskii dnevnik" on their podcast and on Russian domestic politics in general.
article

Putin’s End Game?

Henry Hale March 11, 2020 Partner Posts
Even if current appearances are correct that Putin is bidding to stay in power for another decade, the Russian leader’s aging means the issue of succession will not completely go away.
article

Piketty on Eurasia

Ivan U. Klyszcz March 10, 2020 Recommended Reads
Every society in history has justified inequality. In today’s Russia the ideological framework was adopted in a hurry, argues the famed economist.
podcast

What Does Putin’s Government Shakeup Mean for His Role in Russia?

Brookings Institution January 17, 2020
In this podcast, Angela Stent interprets Putin’s latest moves, the resignation of Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and the rest of the current government and what to watch for during the next few months.
article

A Demographic Trap and Low Growth Are Putin’s Biggest Challenges

John Dizard January 17, 2020 Recommended Reads
Despite Western expectations of reports of doom and gloom from Russia, the country is in fact adopting expansionary economic and social policies that appear to be financially sustainable.
article

Putin Is Planning a Partial Retirement

Alexander Baunov January 17, 2020 Partner Posts
Putin has set out the road map for the transition he wants Russia to make in 2024. It is a picture of continuity, in which Putin can still keep a pivotal role, even if not necessarily the most prominent one in public.
podcast

Of Russian Intelligence and Political Emigres

Center for Strategic and International Studies November 22, 2019 Partner Posts
In this episode of Russian Roulette, Jeffrey Mankoff, senior fellow at CSIS's Russia and Eurasia Program, sits down with Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan to discuss their recent book and the history of Russian intelligence as well as its relationship with exiles and emigres abroad.
article

Why Putin Sounds Alt-Right Though He Really Isn’t

Leonid Bershidsky November 06, 2019 Recommended Reads
Bershidsky argues that "Putin sees Trump, Brexiters, the European far right and alt-right as his natural allies against the established global order, one of steady alliances and stable multilateral organizations."
interview

Timothy Colton on Political Succession in Russia

Ekaterina Karpenko and Mariam Dadashyan October 31, 2019
Harvard's Timothy Colton discusses the problem of orderly succession in Russia, the chances for a thaw in U.S.-Russian relations and much more in this interview with Gazeta.ru.
book review

Fearing and Ignoring Russia: A Recipe for Trouble

Paul Saunders October 01, 2019 RM Exclusives
Historian Mark Smith’s provocative book won’t give the U.S. a policy to manage its relationship with Russia, but it does offer some valuable guidance in thinking about strategic solutions.
Competing Views on Russia

John Mearsheimer on Russia: Insights and Recommendations

Thomas Schaffner September 26, 2019 RM Exclusives
When Americans find their domestic politics the target of foreign interference, "they become deeply committed to the principle of self-determination." Not surprisingly, writes leading American international relations scholar John Mearsheimer, "so do the Russians."
book review

Anders Aslund Examines Russia’s ‘Authoritarian Kleptocracy’

Chris Miller September 18, 2019 RM Exclusives
Corruption is a feature, not a bug, of the Russian political system, and self-enrichment is crucial to understanding why Russia’s leaders make the decisions that they do, Aslund argues in his new book.

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