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.
policy brief

Trump, Putin and the Growing Risk of Military Escalation

Łukasz Kulesa and Shatabhisha Shetty July 04, 2017 Partner Posts
In this policy brief, the authors argue that the presidency of Donald Trump is complicating an already tense and challenged deterrence relationship between Russia and NATO, and this is exacerbated by the tendency of the Russian leadership to take foreign policy risks.
report

Lessons from Russia's Operations in Crimea and Eastern Ukraine

Michael Kofman, Katya Migacheva, Brian Nichiporuk, Andrew Radin, Olesya Tkacheva and Jenny Oberholtzer May 01, 2017 Recommended Reads
Russia's military operation in 2014 to annex Crimea was a decisive and competent use of military force, while its campaign in the eastern part of Ukraine was ineffectually implemented but achieved its aim: political fragmentation of the country.
presentation

Team Trump on Russia: Words and Actions

RM Staff March 02, 2017 RM Exclusives
Early this year the new U.S. president picked his Cabinet members, other top officials and advisors. Here is an evolving guide to their positions on Russia and ties with the country.
research paper

Illusions vs. Reality: Twenty-Five Years of US Policy Toward Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia

Eugene Rumer, Richard Sokolsky, Paul Stronski and Andrew S. Weiss February 09, 2017 Recommended Reads
Long-standing disagreements on national security interests and policies will make repairing the U.S.-Russian relationship challenging.
multimedia

25 Years After the Collapse of the Soviet Union: What Comes Next?

RM staff December 08, 2016 RM Exclusives
Graham Allison, Niall Ferguson, Mary Elise Sarotte and Arne Westad consider the fall of the USSR as “applied history,” pondering what went right, what went wrong and what policymakers can learn.
podcast

From Oil Dependence to Cyber Conflict: 6 Podcasts on Russia

Carnegie Corporation of New York December 08, 2016 Partner Posts
Prominent Russia experts discuss Russia, its relations with the U.S. and their impact on international peace and security. Topics include policy drivers, NATO, Russia’s economy and more.
report

Elevation and Calibration: A New Russia Policy for America

Andrew Kuchins December 01, 2016 Partner Posts
With the U.S.-Russia relationship at its most dangerous level since the 1980s, the arrival of a new administration presents an opportunity to clearly evaluate the significant risks current hostilities pose. Containment or deterrence alone cannot mitigate these risks; instead, Washington should pursue a policy of calibration and elevation.
column

What Would a Realist World Have Looked Like?

Stephen M. Walt January 18, 2016 Recommended Reads
Expanding NATO didn’t strengthen the alliance; it just committed the U.S. to protect a group of weak and hard-to-defend places that were far from home but right next door to Russia.
report

US-Russian Relations Beyond Ukraine

Richard Weitz May 01, 2015 Recommended Reads
Beyond Ukraine, the underlying source of conflict is the lack of stakeholders on either side who stand to benefit from improved relations.
column

Why Arming Kiev is a Really, Really Bad Idea

Stephen M. Walt February 09, 2015
Arming Ukraine will simply intensify the conflict and add to the suffering of the Ukrainian people.
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