In this episode of New Ideal Live, Elan Journo and Agustina Vergara Cid discuss Russia’s possible imminent invasion of Ukraine, America’s stake in this crisis and U.S. foreign policy toward Russia.

Among the topics covered:

An overview of the current state of the crisis;

How to conceptualize America’s interests in foreign policy;

Russian president Vladimir Putin’s demands;

The nature of Putin’s regime and his attempts to expand Russian power;

Applying the Objectivist moral framework to the Russia-Ukraine crisis;

What actions the U.S. should take in response to Russia’s actions;

How and why Putin lends support to other hostile dictatorships around the world;

The history of America’s amoral approach to Putin’s Russia;

The amoralism of the dominant views on U.S. policy in the Russia-Ukraine crisis;

How European countries should respond to the crisis;

Whether NATO is a valuable organization today.

Mentioned in the discussion are Leonard Peikoff’s lecture “Some Notes About Tomorrow,” Peter Schwartz’s book The Foreign Policy of Self-Interest: A Moral Ideal for America, Onkar Ghate and Elan Journo’s book Failing to Confront Islamic Totalitarianism (2nd edition), and Journo’s book What Justice Demands.

The podcast was recorded on February 16, 2022. Listen to the discussion below. Listen and subscribe from your mobile device on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify or Stitcher. Watch archived podcasts here.

https://youtu.be/H1a3e7P1Ziw

Podcast audio: