Democrats are deeply concerned by Barr’s investigation into Russia probe origins.
Paul Robinson: Crisis? What Crisis?
Actually, it’s not true that ‘Putin has consistently argued that authoritarianism is better than democracy at providing for and protecting his citizens.’ What he actually says is that Russia needs democracy, but it has to be of a specific sort – one with strong presidential power. In my in depth studies of his speeches, I’ve never once come across him using the word ‘authoritarianism’.
Sarah Chayes: Hunter Biden’s Perfectly Legal, Socially Acceptable Corruption
Donald Trump committed an impeachable offense, but prominent Americans also shouldn’t be leveraging their names for payoffs from shady clients abroad.
Fred Weir: Trust deficit: The roots of Russia’s standoff with the West
Why are U.S.-Russia relations still so fueled by suspicion – and still fueling global turmoil? The Russian view, rarely heard in the West, begins with post-Soviet hopes that crumbled as desires for the new era went disregarded.
Fred Weir: A corner of Moscow fights to keep history from being built over, literally
While political speech is tightly controlled in Russia, there is increasing room for apolitical civil debate. That is what’s happening around the development of the old Badaevskiy Beer Plant site in Moscow.
Nikolas K. Gvosdev: Don’t Bet on Reset: US-Russian Relations in the Wake of the Coronavirus
Trump may be the first U.S. president in the modern period to be most inclined to reach a deal with the Kremlin, but he is also the hamstrung Chief Executive. Expansive and broad-ranging sanctions legislation—which he himself signed into law – imposes key penalties not only on different parts of the Russian economy, but also on third parties who purchase Russian military equipment or assist the construction of Russia’s Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Moreover, these restrictions carry no sunset clause, so that even Joe Biden, should he replace Trump in office after the November election, would also be, if he were even so inclined, unable to initiate a repeat of the Barack Obama-Dmitry Medvedev reset.
Paul Robinson: Does Military Intervention Work?
Alex Aragona chats with Paul Robinson as he offers his thoughts on whether or not military intervention works (and explores what is meant by “works”).
RAND Corporation: A New Approach to Conventional Arms Control in Europe
Over 30 years after the end of the Cold War, military tensions have returned to Europe. Both the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and Russia are boosting their deployments in close proximity to one another and in multiple domains.
Michael Metz: What About Communism?
I’ve often wondered what Russians thought about the Communist system that ruled their country for 70 years. Generally they don’t talk about it, like most people they’re focused on the present and the future, not on the past, but I’m curious, so I ask. Here’s a random sample of answers. [Read more…] about Michael Metz: What About Communism?
Andrey Sushentsov: ‘Arms Control for Adults’ Is Still Too Young
A world without catastrophic wars and conflicts is better than the world that compelled countries to establish those effective arms control regimes in the first place. Wouldn’t it be better to give up trying to dismantle systems that work well enough as is?
Jacob Heilbrunn: If Mike Pence Becomes President the Neocons Will Stage a Comeback
It remains improbable but less unlikely than a week ago: Mike Pence could become president.
Reuters: Russian PM Mishustin diagnosed with the new coronavirus
Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin told President Vladimir Putin on Thursday that he had been diagnosed with the new coronavirus.
John E. Pepper: The Risk and Danger of Turning Nations Who Are Competitors into Existential Enemies
It was December, 1989. I had just assumed responsibility for Procter & Gamble’s International business. I was excited about the future opportunities, for P&G and for the world and personally. Francie and I had always loved going to and understanding other countries and their cultures. It was an exciting time. [Read more…] about John E. Pepper: The Risk and Danger of Turning Nations Who Are Competitors into Existential Enemies
Richard Sakwa: Putin and the Pandemic: Testing the Paradoxes of Putinism
Vladimir Putin is potentially the most important leader of our era. He is in equal measure misunderstood and condemned. He has been at the helm of the world’s largest country since late 1999, and his decisions have shaped not only Russia but also some of the key issues in world politics. It is therefore crucial to understand what motivates the man, what shapes his policies, and what have been the consequences. [Read more…] about Richard Sakwa: Putin and the Pandemic: Testing the Paradoxes of Putinism
Ted Galen Carpenter: Time To Reassess The United States’ Relationship With Ukraine
Lost in all the partisan bickering is a more important issue: Washington’s overall relationship with Ukraine and whether that relationship really serves America’s best interests.
AFP: For Russians, humble dacha provides refuge from coronavirus
With half the world on some form of lockdown because of the coronavirus pandemic, countless millions of city dwellers are stuck inside, with only the occasional trip out to relieve their isolation.
Robert Wright: Samantha and the Power of Denial
Members of the foreign policy establishment—the agglomeration of liberal hawks and neocon ultrahawks that have been dubbed “the blob”—scratch each other’s backs and forgive each other for making the same kinds of bad calls they’ve made. So the blob keeps blobbing.
Anatol Lieven: Climate Change and the State: A Case for Environmental Realism
In the West today, only the truly paranoid (or those seeking to protect military budgets) seriously assert the possibility of a Russian invasion of NATO. Western security anxieties concerning Russia (and increasingly China as well) have instead become focused on Moscow’s capacity to encourage and manipulate the internal discontent and division within Western democracy, thereby undermining the legitimacy of Western democratic systems.
Daniel McCarthy: The Real Reason Donald Trump Could Be Impeached
I know it’s far-fetched, but if, just for a moment, we imagine that Hunter Biden does not have the skills of the sort that a Ukrainian oil company needs badly enough to purchase for $600,000 per year, then what could possibly have prompted a generous oligarch to lavish such sums on this lucky American?
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute: Global military expenditure sees largest annual increase in a decade
The five largest spenders in 2019, which accounted for 62 per cent of expenditure, were the United States, China, India, Russia and Saudi Arabia.