Max and Maria were recently joined by Michael Kimmage and Jeffrey Mankoff for a live event in the CSIS broadcast studio to discuss the team's recent work outlining a new European strategy for containing Russia.

This conversation was recorded on January 30, 2025. For a video recording of this event, please go to CSIS.org.

On today's episode, Max and Maria give their initial takes on the news that U.S. and Russian negotiators met in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on February 18 to begin efforts to reach a diplomatic resolution to the war in Ukraine, notably without representatives from Ukraine or European nations present.

This episode was recorded on February 18, as this story was still developing.

Max and Maria spoke with historian Sergey Radchenko about his latest book, To Run the World: The Kremlin's Cold War Bid for Global Power, and how the study of Soviet foreign policy can help us understand Russia's current approach to global affairs.

Sergey's book is available for purchase from Cambridge University Press.

Maria spoke with Hanna Notte and Natasha Hall about the new balance of forces in the Middle East at the start of 2025, and what the current geopolitical situation in the region means for Russia.

Max and Maria were joined by Dr. Sam Greene to reflect on a quarter century of Putinism in Russia, how Vladimir Putin's rule has changed the country, and where his regime might be headed from here.

Follow Sam's writing on Substack by subscribing to his blog, TL;DRussia.

Max and Maria were joined by Russian military expert Michael Kofman to discuss where the war in Ukraine may be headed in the year to come. With a new administration in Washington and political turmoil across Europe, Russia continuing to make grinding gains on the battlefield, and calls for some sort of negotiated settlement rising, the next six months could prove critical to the future direction of the conflict.

This conversation was recorded live in the CSIS Brack Studio on December 12, 2024. The full video from this conversation is available on the CSIS website. This is the last episode of Russian Roulette for 2024. After a brief break for the holidays, we will return with new episodes in January 2025.

Max and Maria speak with Dara Massicot, one of the leading experts on the Russian military and the war in Ukraine. Dara gives updates on the efforts of both sides to make gains on the battlefield, along with the current risks of escalation as we head into 2025. This conversation was recorded on December 3, 2024.

 Max and Maria speak with Michael Kimmage to take stock of the impact of the recent U.S. elections on the future of the war in Ukraine, and U.S. policy towards Russia.

"An Outcome 'Up for Grabs': What Can Russia and Ukraine Expect from the Next U.S. Administration?" by Maria Snegovaya, Tina Dolbaia, and Nick Fenton (Center for Strategic and International Studies)

Max and Maria spoke with Sorin Ioniță and Eto Buziashvili about the recent election results coming out of Moldova and Georgia. Both of these post-Soviet states find themselves at a geopolitical crossroads, with Russian malign influence campaigns directly impacting their domestic politics.

Max and Maria with Ben Cahill and Eddie Fishman about the current state of Russia's energy industry, and the prospects for the country's lucrative hydrocarbon exports. They also assessed the impacts of Western sanctions on the industry to date and ways those sanctions could potentially be tightened going forward. This conversation was recorded on October 7, 2024.

Chokepoints: American Power in the Age of Economic Warfare by Edward Fishman is available for pre-order now (Penguin Random House).