Russian Roulette

Latest Episodes:

Of Rogue and Peer Competitors - Russian Roulette Episode 80 Apr 16, 2019

Show notes

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Jeff sits down with Ambassador James Dobbins, Howard Schultz, and Ali Wyne, authors of the recent RAND Corporation report “Russia Is a Rogue, Not a Peer; China Is a Peer, Not a Rogue.” They discuss what type of challenge Russia and China pose to U.S. interests, how the two challenges are similar and different, and what U.S. policy can do in response to each.
We encourage you to read their report, here: https://www.rand.org/pubs/perspectives/PE310.html

You can view their bios and other publications, here:
https://www.rand.org/about/people/d/dobbins_james.html
https://www.rand.org/about/people/s/shatz_howard_j.html
https://www.rand.org/about/people/w/wyne_ali.html

Of Putin's World - Russian Roulette Episode 79 Apr 04, 2019

Show notes

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Jeff sits down with Angela Stent, director of the Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies and a professor of government and foreign service at Georgetown University, and author of the recent book “Putin’s World: Russia Against the West and With the Rest” (Twelve, 2019), for which she won the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy’s prize for the best book on U.S-Russia Relations. They discuss Angela's new book, U.S.-Russia relations, Vladimir Putin's role in the construction of Russian foreign policy, and much, much more.

You can read Angela's bio and other publications, here: https://www.brookings.edu/experts/angela-stent/

We highly encourage (insist!) you pick up a copy of Angela's book at your local bookstore, or order it, here: https://www.twelvebooks.com/titles/angela-stent/putins-world/9781455533015/

Of Law and the Russian State – Russian Roulette Episode 78 Mar 14, 2019

Show notes

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Jeff sits down with William Pomeranz, Deputy Director of the Wilson Center’s Kennan Institute and author of Law and the Russian State: Russia's Legal Evolution from Peter the Great to Vladimir Putin (Bloomsbury, 2018). They discuss the evolution of law in Russia, the role of state power in the Russian legal tradition, the criminalization of commercial disputes, including the recent Michael Calvey case, Russia’s succession question and its legal ramifications, and much, much more.

We sincerely recommend Will’s book, available for purchase, here, https://www.amazon.com/Law-Russian-State-Evolution-Bloomsbury/dp/1474224229, or for order from your local bookstore.

You can view Will’s bio and read more about his other projects, here: https://www.wilsoncenter.org/person/william-e-pomeranz

We want more mail! If you would like to have your question answered on the podcast, send it to us! Email rep@csis.org and put “Russian Roulette” in the subject line. And, if you have one, include your Twitter handle, so we can notify you publicly when we answer your question (or, if you don’t want us to, tell us that). We look forward to hearing from you.

Of Fractured Regions – Russian Roulette Episode 77 Feb 27, 2019

Show notes

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Jeff sits down with Anna Ohanyan, the Richard B. Finnegan Distinguished Professor of Political Science and International Relations at Stonehill College. They discuss the concept of “regional fracture” in the post-Soviet world, how Russia employs this strategy to secure its own aims, what can be done about it, and why we should care.

For more on this topic, check out Anna’s new book, an edited volume titled Russia Abroad: Driving Regional Fracture in Post-Communist Eurasia and Beyond (Georgetown University Press, 2018) - http://press.georgetown.edu/book/georgetown/russia-abroad. And don’t miss Anna’s recent presentation at CSIS: https://www.csis.org/events/russia-abroad

You can view Anna’s bio and read more about her other projects, here: https://www.stonehill.edu/directory/anna-ohanyan/

Of Kazakhstan – Russian Roulette Episode 76 Feb 13, 2019

Show notes

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Jeff sits down with Joanna Lillis, an Almaty-based journalist for The Economist, The Guardian, and EurasiaNet and author of the recent book Dark Shadows: Inside the Secret World of Kazakhstan, a vibrant portrait of the country based on 13 years of on-the-ground reporting. They discuss Nursultan Nazarbayev’s legacy, Kazakh identity and lots more.

You can follow Joanna, here, https://twitter.com/joannalillis?lang=en, and we recommend you purchase her excellent book through your local independent book store.

Of Russia and the New Congress – Russian Roulette Episode 75 Jan 29, 2019

Show notes

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Jeff sits down with Louis Lauter, Vice President for Congressional and Government Affairs at CSIS, and Colin McElhinny, Associate Director and Associate Fellow for Congressional and Government Affairs at CSIS. They discuss the role of Congress in U.S. relations with Russia, attitudes and approaches to Russia in the new Congress, and what sanctions legislation may be on the horizon. Note that this episode was recorded on January 25, before the government shutdown had ended.

You can learn more about Louis, here, https://www.csis.org/people/louis-lauter, and Colin, here, https://www.csis.org/people/colin-mcelhinny.

Be sure to check out their excellent work measuring the internationalism of Congress, here: https://www.csis.org/features/beyond-waters-edge

Of the Day after INF, and Mail – Russian Roulette Episode 74 Jan 15, 2019

Show notes

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Jeff sits down with Adam Mount, a Senior Fellow and the Director of the Defense Posture Project at the Federation of American Scientists, to discuss the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, its apparent demise, and the future of nuclear arms control. Then, Jeff answers our listeners’ mailbag questions on missile defense, the link between national identity and security orders in the post-Soviet region, and the future of Crimea.

Check out Adam’s bio and his recent publications, here: https://fas.org/expert/adam-mount/

We answered your mail, and we need more! If you would like to have your question answered on the podcast, send it to us! Email rep@csis.org and put “Russian Roulette” in the subject line. And, if you have one, include your Twitter handle, so we can notify you publicly when we answer your question (or, if you don’t want us to, tell us that). We look forward to hearing from you.

Of an Old Year (and New Beginnings) Jan 01, 2019

Show notes

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Olya and Jeff offer their take on a busy 2018 in Russia and Eurasia: the Mueller investigation, Vladimir Putin 4.0, Skripal, the World Cup, Trump and Putin’s Helsinki encounter, a new government in Armenia, the Sea of Azov crisis. It's all here, and much, much more.
2018 brought some good news and some bad news. In the latter category, we are sad to report that this is the final episode of Russian Roulette featuring co-host Olya Oliker (though not the final episode of Russian Roulette, nor, likely, even the final episode with Olya participating). Olya is off to an exciting new position as head the Europe & Central Asia division of the International Crisis Group. Olya bids her farewell and thanks to all Russian Roulette listeners. This has been one of her favorite parts of the job, and your support made it possible. Meanwhile, Jeff will continue to carry the Russian Roulette torch into 2019.
It’s a New Year and we need new mailbag questions! If you would like to have your question answered on the podcast, send it to us! Email rep@csis.org and put “Russian Roulette” in the subject line. And, if you have one, include your Twitter handle, so we can notify you publicly when we answer your question (or, if you don’t want us to, tell us that). We look forward to hearing from you. С наступающим 2019 годом!

Of Ukraine’s Election Campaign – Russian Roulette Episode 72 Dec 18, 2018

Show notes

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Jeff sits down with Melinda Haring, Editor of the UkraineAlert blog at the Atlantic Council and a fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute. They discuss the upcoming presidential elections in Ukraine: the candidates, the issues, how it’s likely to play out, and what it all means for Ukraine and for the West.

You can view Melinda’s bio, here, https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/about/experts/list/melinda-haring#fullbio, and follow the excellent UkraineAlert blog, here, https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/ukrainealert.

Check out video of a recent CSIS event on Ukraine’s elections, here: https://www.csis.org/events/ukraines-election-campaign.

As always, keep sending us mailbag questions! If you would like to have your question answered on the podcast, send it to us! Email rep@csis.org and put “Russian Roulette” in the subject line. And, if you have one, include your Twitter handle, so we can notify you publicly when we answer your question (or, if you don’t want us to, tell us that). We look forward to hearing from you.

Of Famine and Memory in Kazakhstan – Russian Roulette Episode 71 Dec 05, 2018

Show notes

In this episode, Jeff sits down with Sarah Cameron, associate professor of history at the University of Maryland and author of the recent book The Hungry Steppe: Famine, Violence, and the Making of Soviet Kazakhstan (Cornell University Press, 2018), which examines an important though oft-overlooked episode in Soviet collectivization, the Kazakh famine of 1930-33. They discuss the causes and consequences of the famine; Sarah’s experience researching the topic in Kazakhstan; why the Kazakh famine is so little known in the West; how Kazakh society interacts with this episode of its history; and the state (and politics) of scholarship on Soviet collectivization.
You can view Sarah’s bio, here, http://history.umd.edu/users/scameron, and you can purchase her book, here: http://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/?GCOI=80140109782010
As always, keep sending us mailbag questions! If you would like to have your question answered on the podcast, send it to us! Email rep@csis.org and put “Russian Roulette” in the subject line. And, if you have one, include your Twitter handle, so we can notify you publicly when we answer your question (or, if you don’t want us to, tell us that). We look forward to hearing from you.

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