News

New Strategic Doc Formalizes Russia’s Launch-on-Warning Posture; Rosatom Developing UV Light COVID-19 Treatment Promoted by Trump

June 05, 2020
The posture is in line with Putin’s statements, but notable to see in a formal document; the potentially dangerous treatment in development by Rosatom scientists uses UV light inside the body as a disinfectant; and more in our weekly news digest.
Blog

Coronavirus and the Kremlin: Will Putin’s Ratings Keep Falling Through Fall?

Daniel Shapiro June 04, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has already pushed Vladimir Putin’s approval ratings to historically low levels, and it may be that the ratings of the Russian leader, his government and his party are not done falling just yet.
Analysis

New Document Consolidates Russia’s Nuclear Policy in One Place

Olga Oliker June 04, 2020 RM Exclusives
Russia’s new nuclear deterrence strategy document confirms that its policy is not “escalate to de-escalate,” but the document isn't likely to put the debate to rest.
News
New Strategic Doc Formalizes Russia’s Launch-on-Warning Posture; Rosatom Developing UV Light COVID-19 Treatment Promoted by Trump
June 05, 2020
Blog
Coronavirus and the Kremlin: Will Putin’s Ratings Keep Falling Through Fall?
June 04, 2020
Analysis
New Document Consolidates Russia’s Nuclear Policy in One Place
June 04, 2020
RM Staff Picks
Analysis

The Risks of Autonomous Weapons Systems for Crisis Stability and Conflict Escalation in Future US-Russia Confrontations

Burgess Laird
Autonomous weapons systems could foster crisis instability, conflict escalation in contests between the U.S. and Russia in multiple ways. Policymakers must consider if the putative advantages of such systems are worth the potential risks they may rai...
Read More
Analysis

Khodorkovsky Marks the Spot: Russia’s Turning Point From Economic Freedom to State Control

Sergei Guriev
Mikhail Khodorkovsky’s sentencing 15 years ago this month signaled the end of Russia's market reforms and the beginning of ever-increasing state control.
Read More
Analysis

Who ‘Defeated’ ISIS? An Analysis of US and Russian Contributions

Domitilla Sagramoso
There can be little doubt that the U.S. and its allies played a much bigger role in subduing the terror group than Russia. But ISIS has plenty of life in it yet and any alleged victory is fragile.
Read More
Analysis

Stent and Hill on COVID-19 Challenging Putin’s Grip on Power

VOA
Russia experts Angela Stent and Fiona Hill discuss the impact of the coronavirus on the Russian leader as well as on the country's domestic and international positions.
Read More
Analysis

Russia and Collective Security: Why CSTO Is No Match for Warsaw Pact

Dmitry Gorenburg
The CSTO is too organizationally weak and insufficiently integrated to serve as a capability multiplier for its members, and the weakness of other member states' military forces make them of limited value to Russia as military allies.
Read More
Blog

Many Russians Expect to Lose Jobs, Take Pay Cuts in Wake of Pandemic

Thomas Schaffner
An April Levada Center poll shows that almost half of Russians expect layoffs within their household in the coming months and almost a third have already had someone in their household recently lose a job.
Read More
Analysis

The Dark Arts of Disinformation Through a Historical Lens

Arthur Martirosyan
Understanding the fantastic past of disinformation is key to deciphering the present, argues Thomas Rid in his pioneering analysis of modern disinformation warfare from a historical perspective.
Read More
Analysis

Is Ukraine a Hub for International White Supremacist Fighters?

Huseyn Aliyev
Has Ukraine become a training hub for white supremacists on either side of the conflict?
Read More
Analysis

Kto-Kogo: Putin vs. COVID-19

Thomas Graham
Some believe the pandemic and the oil price collapse will erode the Russian president's power or end his presidency. But with the skill he has shown, and the luck that has favored him for 20 years, he could emerge from this crisis even stronger.
Read More
Blog

Poll: Majority of Young Russians Distrust NATO, Don’t Consider Russia a European Country

Thomas Schaffner and Angelina Flood
A recent survey conducted by Russia’s independent Levada Center and Germany’s Friedrich Ebert Foundation sheds light on the political views of Russia's "Generation Z."
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Nota Bene

Tracking COVID-19 in Russia and the U.S.

Daily tallies of new coronavirus cases in the U.S. and Russia.
Click here for our interactive infographics.
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US-Russia Relations: Quest for Stability

Whiskey & Vodka

A new interactive multimedia tool distills the fundamental issues (adversarial and cooperative) that define U.S.-Russia relations. Click to explore "U.S.-Russia Relations: Quest for Stability"!
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