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Hosted by Max Bergmann and Dr. Maria Snegovaya of the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program at CSIS, Russian Roulette explores the politics, history, and complex societies of Russia and Eurasia. Tune in for fascinating interviews and discussions on some of the biggest questions facing the broader post-Soviet space. Produced by Tina Dolbaia and Nick Fenton.
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On this week's episode, Max and Maria sat down with Roman Dobrokhotov, the founder and editor-in-chief of the Russia-focused investigative media outlet, The Insider. Roman's team, along with colleagues at CBS's 60 Minutes and the German outlet Der Spiegel, recently concluded an investigation that uncovered evidence potentially linking Russia's military intelligence agency, the GRU, with the health incidents impacting U.S. government officials and their families that have come to be known as "Havana Syndrome."
Show Notes: "Unraveling Havana Syndrome: New evidence links the GRU's assassination Unit 29155 to mysterious attacks on U.S. officials and their families" by Roman Dobrokhotov, Christo Grozev, and Michael Weiss (The Insider)
Max and Maria sat down with Paul Schwartz and Sam Bendett to discuss the different technological and tactical battlefield innovations taking place in Ukraine today, and what they mean for military analysts studying the war.
Disclaimer: Paul and Sam's views as expressed in this episode are their own, and do not necessarily represent the Center for Naval Analyses (CNA).
Nicolas Véron of Bruegel and the Peterson Institute for International Economics joined Max to discuss the ongoing debate over Russia's frozen central bank reserves. This conversation was recorded on March 15, 2024.
See "The European Union should do better than confiscate Russia's reserve money" by Nicolas Véron for Bruegel. At the time of this episode's publication, the European Council met for a summit in Brussels and was considering a plan to use the profits accrued to frozen Russian assets to provide military support for Ukraine.
This week, Maria was joined once again by Liana Fix and Nikolay Petrov to discuss Russia's March 2024 presidential election, and what "politics" looks like in the country today.
Be sure to read the new paper written by Maria and Liana, "Leadership Change in Russia: Contingency Planning Memorandum" (Council on Foreign Relations).
This week, Max and Maria are joined again by Miriam Lanskoy from the National Endowment for Democracy to discuss the recent news of Alexei Navalny's death in a Russian penal colony.
On this week's episode, listen to Max interview Maria on her new book, "When Left Moves Right: The Decline of the Left and the Rise of the Populist Right in Postcommunist Europe." Max and Maria were joined by Dan Kelemen, a Senior Associate non-resident fellow at CSIS and an expert on the European Union. This conversation was recorded on January 30, 2024. To order a copy of Maria's book, please click here.
This week, Max and Maria were joined by acclaimed reporter, Catherine Belton. Catherine currently writes for the Washington Post, and has written extensively on the Russian elite and security services. Max, Maria, and Catherine discussed ongoing Russian efforts to influence democratic societies, and the particular vulnerability facing Western countries as they gear up for a series of elections across the globe in 2024.
Michael Kofman, a leading expert on the Russian military and a Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace joined Max, Maria, and Michael Kimmage, to discuss the status of further Western military and financial aid to Ukraine, and the impact a lack of additional assistance would have on the battlefield. This recording took place on December 20, 2023. The full video of the conversation can be found here.
This week, Max and Maria were joined again by Michael Kimmage, and Michael's frequent co-author and a fellow for Europe at the Council on Foreign Relations, Liana Fix. Recently, Michael and Liana published a piece in Foreign Affairs titled, "A Containment Strategy for Ukraine: How the West Can Help Kyiv Endure a Long War," and they shared their piece's main arguments and conclusions over the course of the episode. This conversation was recorded on December 8, 2023.
Learn More:
"A Containment Strategy for Ukraine: How the West Can Help Kyiv Endure a Long War," by Liana Fix and Michael Kimmage
On this week's episode, Maria fills in Max and Michael Kimmage after her recent trip to Kyiv. The three of them then discuss the current state of the war with Russia, and examine some of the key questions facing Ukraine and its partners as we head into 2024.
On October 31st, Max moderated a conversation between Maria and Sergei Guriev on the ideology of Putinism. Does Vladimir Putin have an ideology? If so, will this ideology help him retain power in Russia? Maria recently co-authored a report on this same topic, and the paper's findings were the main topic of discussion. Dr. Sergei Guriev is the Provost at Sciences Po in Paris, and a renowned professor of economics. Previously, he led the New Economic School in Moscow from 2004-2013. Additionally, he served as the Chief Economist of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development from 2016-2019.
Learn More:
"The Ideology of Putinism: Is It Sustainable?" by Maria Snegovaya, Michael Kimmage, and Jade McGlynn
"Spin Dictators: The Changing Face of Tyranny in the 21st Century" by Sergei Guriev and Daniel Treisman
On this week's episode, tune into a conversation Max had on October 24, 2023 with CSIS Senior Associate non-resident fellows, Michael Kimmage and Hanna Notte. Hanna, based in Berlin, is an expert on Russian foreign policy, the Middle East, and arms control and nonproliferation. While Hanna was in DC, she sat down with Max and Michael to discuss Russia's strategy towards the Global South in the wake of Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Learn More:
"Putin is Getting What He Wants," by Hanna Notte (The New York Times)
"How Russia Globalized the War in Ukraine," by Michael Kimmage and Hanna Notte (Foreign Affairs)
"Russia's Axis of the Sanctioned," by Hanna Notte (Foreign Affairs)
"The Age of Great-Power Distraction" by Michael Kimmage and Hanna Notte (Foreign Affairs)
"Seller's Remorse: The Challenges Facing Russia's Arms Exports," by Max Bergmann, Maria Snegovaya, Tina Dolbaia, and Nick Fenton (CSIS)
This conversation was recorded as a CSIS event on September 18, 2023. Max sat down with Lisa Aronsson, John Deni, and Paul Schwartz, to examine how sanctions-induced limits on Russia's defense industrial capacity have been impacting, and will continue to impact, Russia's ability to wage war on Ukraine, counter NATO, and remain a major actor in global arms sales. The panelists discussed the findings of recent reports they authored for CSIS, which are included in the show notes below.
Learn More:
"A War of Attrition: Assessing the Impact of Equipment Shortages on Russian Military Operations in Ukraine," by Paul Schwartz | CSIS
"Agile and Adaptable: U.S. and NATO Approaches to Russia's Short-Term Military Potential," by Lisa Aronsson, John R. Deni, and Hanna Notte | CSIS
"Seller's Remorse: The Challenges Facing Russia's Arms Exports," by Max Bergmann, Maria Snegovaya, Tina Dolbaia, and Nick Fenton | CSIS
Please click here to read an analysis by the New York Times on the findings of "Seller's Remorse."
This week, Maria interviews Max about the emerging crisis around the future of U.S. security assistance to Ukraine. Max deep dives into the mechanics of how U.S. funding for Ukraine's war effort actually works, the impact of the ouster of Kevin McCarthy from the House speakership on the funding debate, and the potential role of the EU in filling the gap if the Biden administration fails to gain additional congressional authorization to support Kyiv.
Learn More:
"U.S. Security Assistance to Ukraine Is Going to Get Complicated," by Max Bergmann (War on the Rocks, 3/3/2023)
On this week's episode, Max is joined by Eric Ciaramella of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, to discuss his recent writing on possible long-term security arrangements for Ukraine while the country remains outside of the NATO alliance.
Learn More:
"How the West Can Secure Ukraine's Future: Kyiv Needs a Binding Commitment Before NATO Membership" by Eric Ciaramella (Foreign Affairs)
"Envisioning a Long-Term Security Arrangement for Ukraine" by Eric Ciaramella (Carnegie Endowment for International Peace)
After a few weeks off for the summer, Max and Maria are back, and are joined again this week by Professor Michael Kimmage. Max, Maria, and Michael discuss all the biggest headlines coming out of Russia and Ukraine since our last episode at the start of August, and give their takes on where events might be headed next.
Learn More:
The Eurofile | CSIS Podcasts
"How Russia Globalized the War in Ukraine: The Kremlin's Pressure-Point Strategy to Undermine the West" by Michael Kimmage and Hanna Notte | Foreign Affairs
On this week's episode, Max and Maria are joined by long-time Russia hand and national security specialist, Rose Gottemoeller, for a wide-ranging conversation on Russian politics, the war in Ukraine, NATO, and nuclear non-proliferation. A former Deputy Secretary General of NATO and Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security at the U.S. Department of State, Rose reflects on her many years working in U.S.-Russian relations to provide insight on global politics today.
In this week's episode, Max and Maria are joined by economists Elina Ribakova and Sergey Aleksashenko to discuss the current state of the Russian economy.
Learn More:
"Sanctions Evaporate with Time" by Sergey Aleksashenko | Substack
"Russia's War Machine Is Still Running on Western Equipment" by Elina Ribakova
In this episode, Max and Maria are joined by Andrew Monaghan and Richard Connolly to discuss their most recent work, "The Sea in Russian Strategy," a new edited volume on the growing importance of naval and maritime concerns in Moscow's foreign policy. (Note: This episode was recorded before Russia's withdrawal from the Black Sea Grain Initiative on Monday, July 17, 2023.)
Max and Maria recently sat down with Jeffrey Mankoff and Catrina Doxsee to discuss how Yevgeny Prigozhin, the leader of the mercenary Wagner Group, marched his troops towards Moscow in a direct challenge to the Russian leadership. Prigozhin's actions and the Kremlin's response raise important questions about the future of Vladimir Putin's rule, and the ongoing war in Ukraine.
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the is a disgusting empire