Richard Sakwa is Professor Of Russian And European Politics at the University of Kent.

He has written books about Russian and eastern European communist and post-communist politics. Richard was a participant of Valdai Discussion Club, as well as an Associate Fellow of the Russia And Eurasia Programme at the Royal Institute Of International Affairs. He is also a member of the advisory boards of the Institute Of Law And Public Policy in Moscow.

Richard’s conversation with me covers a lot of ground, including the history of Russia and Ukraine; the complexities of Ukraine’s national identity; why Putin is not interested in Ukraine; why Biden and NATO are at fault; Ukrainian government’s deliberate aggression towards its own people; why Putin’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine is understandable but a strategic blunder; the current conflict’s impact on the West.

If you listened to my podcast with Russell Bentley, then I strongly recommend that you listen to this one with Richard.

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