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.
article

What Is the Purpose of American Foreign Policy?

Jacob Heilbrunn December 20, 2020 Partner Posts
Several experts debate American interests and the goal of U.S. foreign policy.
research paper

Russia’s Military Posture in the Arctic: Managing Hard Power in a ‘Low Tension’ Environment

Mathieu Boulègue June 28, 2019 Recommended Reads
If Moscow is indeed militarizing the Russian Arctic, the military build-up and the Kremlin’s intentions are, at least for now, defensive in nature.
research paper

Envisioning Opportunities for US-Russia Cooperation in and With Central Asia

Marlene Laruelle and Andrey Kortunov April 01, 2019 Partner Posts
Central Asia stands out as a comparatively “nontoxic” region where there are limited, but not insignificant, opportunities for U.S.-Russia collaboration both bilaterally and within multilateral frameworks.
research paper

Lessons for Leaders: What Afghanistan Taught Russian and Soviet Strategists

Simon Saradzhyan February 28, 2019 RM Exclusives
Moscow’s military intervention in Afghanistan lasted nearly a decade (1979-1989). It cost the USSR dearly in blood, treasure and power, but imparted lessons as well. Can some of these prove useful to the U.S. today?
research paper

Jihadists from Ex-Soviet Central Asia: Where Are They? Why Did They Radicalize? What Next?

Edward Lemon, Vera Mironova and William Tobey December 07, 2018 RM Exclusives
Three authors draw on field work and other research to assess the motives, prospects and threats linked to Central Asian jihadists, including the thousands who joined Islamic State and other violent extremists in the Middle East.
research paper

China-Russia Relations: Same Bed, Different Dreams? Why Converging Interests Are Unlikely to Lead to a Full-Fledged Alliance

Simon Saradzhyan and Ali Wyne June 07, 2018 RM Exclusives
China and Russia’s shared interests have brought them closer together, but growing disparities between the two make a formal alliance unlikely, unless two conditions emerge—including a weakened, isolated Russia.
presentation

Team Trump on Russia: John Bolton’s Views

Kevin Doyle April 09, 2018 RM Exclusives
As the new national security adviser steps into his role, his bellicose, America-first approach to foreign policy has been cause for comment and consternation. In this evolving guide, we track Bolton's views on Russia and the issues central to U.S.-Russian relations.
research paper

Russian Strategists Debate Preemption as Defense Against NATO Surprise Attack

Alexander Velez-Green March 14, 2018 RM Exclusives
Russian leaders have long debated what to do in the face of a NATO surprise attack. One group of military strategists believes that, in the near future, defensive operations alone will not suffice.
presentation

New U.S. Ambassador to Russia Wants to Bring Relations to ‘Higher Altitude,’ but Not Potemkin-Style

RM Staff October 04, 2017 RM Exclusives
A round-up of Jon Huntsman's comments on and connections to Russia.
event summary

25 Years of US-Russia Relations: What Went Wrong and Can It Go Right?

RM Staff April 14, 2017 RM Exclusives
A quarter century after the Soviet collapse, bilateral tensions are higher than hoped. Here, a score of esteemed Russia watchers explore the lessons learned, the role of diplomatic and commercial ties and the prospects for improvement.
event summary

Panel Discussion: US Politics & Russia

Institute of Politics April 05, 2017 Partner Posts
Panelists speculate on the future of the U.S.-Russian relationship at this event co-hosted by Harvard Kennedy School's Institute of Politics and the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs.
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.