Russian Roulette

 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).

This week, Maria sat down with Sergey Aleksashenko and Alexandra Prokopenko to discuss the Russian central bank's continued inability to reign in domestic inflation, and what it means for Russia's economy and war effort going forward.

On this week's episode, Max and Maria are joined by Andrea Kendall-Taylor to discuss Russian collaboration with China, Iran, and North Korea, and the key role that these partnerships are playing in sustaining Russia's invasion of Ukraine and post-2022 foreign policy strategy.

"The Axis of Upheaval: How America's Adversaries Are Uniting to Overturn the Global Order," by Andrea Kendall-Taylor and Richard Fontaine (Foreign Affairs)

This week, Max and Maria were joined by military analysts Michael Kofman and Rob Lee to discuss the latest phase of the war in Ukraine. Max and Maria asked them for their thoughts on the ongoing Ukrainian offensive in Kursk, and whether or not this seizure of Russian territory by Kyiv exposes Russian threats of escalation as hollow. If they are hollow, does that mean Western "red lines" on certain kinds of aid to Ukraine should be reassessed?

"Ukraine's Gamble: The Risks and Rewards of the Offensive Into Russia's Kursk Region" by Michael Kofman and Rob Lee (September 2, 2024 in Foreign Affairs)

Max and Maria sat down with Sam Bendett and Mick Ryan to discuss the Ukrainian military's recent seizure of territory in Kursk Oblast, inside Russia. They discussed how this attack took place, the risks and potential gains at stake for the Ukrainian side, and what this could all mean for the war going forward.

Check out Mick's latest book, "The War for Ukraine: Strategy and Adaptation Under Fire." All royalties from the book will be donated to support the Ukrainian war effort.

This week, Maria sat down with investigative journalists Andrei Soldatov and Irina Borogan. Andrei and Irina gave their analysis of the recent high-profile Russia-West prisoner swap, and also discussed the threat of Russian hybrid attacks on Western countries. Additionally, they described the complex relationship between the Russian state and the Russian community in emigration, and outlined how the Kremlin views Russian émigrés as both a threat, and a potential source of intelligence opportunities.

 Max and Maria sat down with Jade McGlynn to discuss her recent report for CSIS, "Crossing Thresholds: Ukrainian Resistance to Russian Occupation."

"Crossing Thresholds: Ukrainian Resistance to Russian Occupation," by Jade McGlynn on CSIS.org. 

"The Ukrainian resistance is torching Putin's dreams of conquest," by Jade McGlynn for The Telegraph.

On this week's episode, Max and Michael Kimmage sat down with Dmitri Alperovitch, chairman of Silverado Policy Institute, to discuss Dmitri's recent book, "World on the Brink: How America Can Beat China in the Race for the Twenty-First Century." Recorded on July 2, 2024, the conversation covers the geopolitical parallels between the European and Indo-Pacific theaters today, and what the dual strategic challenges emanating from Moscow and Beijing mean for Western policymakers.

SHOW NOTES: Check out a new CSIS report from Max Bergmann and Christopher B. Johnstone, "Europe's Security Role in the Indo-Pacific: Making It Meaningful."