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Russian Roulette

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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 David Lotfi, Lexi Linafelter, and Nicholas Fenton

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CSIS | Center for Strategic and International Studies

Episodes

Of Putinism and Codes – Russian Roulette Episode 64 28.08.2018 37:43

In this episode, Olga and Jeff sit down with Brian Taylor to talk about his new book, The Code of Putinism. Brian is a professor of political science at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University and his book provides a framework for thinking about Russian domestic and foreign policy. This podcast is a companion to the book launch CSIS hosted for The Code of Putini...

Of Eurasia, in 44 Minutes – Russian Roulette Episode 63 14.08.2018 44:33

In this episode, Olya and Jeff sit down with Bill Courtney for a complete tour d’Eurasie. Bill is an adjunct senior fellow at the RAND Corporation and a former career foreign service officer. He served as ambassador to Georgia, Kazakhstan, and the U.S.-Soviet Bilateral Consultative Commission, and covered Russia and Eurasia on the NSC. We discuss the Russian economy, from taxi drivers and pension...

Of Cold War Poland and Today’s Hot Topics - Russian Roulette Episode 62 31.07.2018 38:39

In this episode, Jeff sits down with Seth G. Jones, director of the Transnational Threats Project and a senior adviser to the International Security Program at CSIS, to discuss Seth’s forthcoming book, A Covert Action: Reagan, the CIA, and the Cold War Struggle in Poland, and the legacy of Cold War political warfare. You can view Seth’s bio and recent publications, here: https://www.csis.org/peopl...

Of Summitry and Asummitry–Russian Roulette Episode 61 17.07.2018 47:03

Jeff and Jeff take center stage in our sixty-first episode of Russian Roulette. Jeff Mankoff sits down with Jeff Rathke, senior fellow and deputy director of the Europe Program at CSIS to discuss major takeaways from the most recent NATO summit, as well as the upcoming (at the time of recording) Trump-Putin bilateral meeting. Then, Jeff Mankoff tackles new mailbag questions, with some help from Re...

Of Proliferants and Nonproliferants – Russian Roulette Episode 60 19.06.2018 41:53

In this episode of Russian Roulette, we sit down with Andrey Baklitskiy. Andrey is a consultant with the PIR Center in Moscow who writes and speaks on arms control and nonproliferation issues. We discuss Russian approaches to nonproliferation, Iran and North Korea, the Treaty on Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT), and the future of arms control. You can read Andrey’s bio and some of his re...

Of Russia’s Political Economy, and Grad Students in Basements – Russian Roulette Episode 59 05.06.2018 43:06

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Jeff sits down with Aaron Schwartzbaum, the founder and former editor-in-chief of BMB Russia (formerly the Bear Market Brief), a daily news brief and blog covering Russia’s economy, politics, business climate, and political risk environment. They discuss the Russian economy (myths, facts, and mysteries, as well as Russia’s economic outlook), Aaron’s experience...

Of Russian Military Reforms from Georgia to Syria – Russian Roulette Episode 58 22.05.2018 28:23

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Olya sits down with Anton Lavrov, a visiting fellow with the Russia and Eurasia Program at CSIS and an independent defense analyst affiliated with the Moscow-based Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies (CAST). Anton is a leading specialist on Russia’s 2008 war in Georgia, and a widely-cited expert on Russian military capabilities and Russian operat...

Of Armaments and Armenia: Russian Roulette Episode 57 08.05.2018 39:38

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Olya sits down with Leonid Nersisyan, Military Analyst at the REGNUM Information Agency and Editor in Chief of the Moscow-based New Defense Order Strategy magazine. They discuss the state of military analysis in Russia, including Leonid’s experience running a military affairs magazine; the Russian military-industrial complex and how defense contracts work in Ru...

Of Reading Russia—And Our Mail - Russian Roulette Episode 56 24.04.2018 48:12

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Olya and Jeff answer the mail! (yes, it has been too long without a mailbag). Then, Olya sits down with Michael Kimmage, a professor of history at Catholic University who from 2014-2016 held the Russia/Ukraine portfolio on the Policy Planning Staff at the U.S. Department of State. They discuss Russian literature: the essential works (including those less known...

Of U.S.-Russia Relations and What is to be Done – Russian Roulette Episode 55 10.04.2018 37:41

In the spirit of history, Russian literature, and other things the CSIS Russia team holds dear, we bring you a Russian Roulette episode that is both deeply gloomy and highly entertaining. Olya and Jeff sit down with Matthew Rojansky, director of the Kennan Institute at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, to discuss the state of U.S.-Russia relations, historical cycles in the rela...

Of Gorbachev, and of Writing About Gorbachev – Russian Roulette Episode 54 28.03.2018 51:50

In a historically-minded episode of Russian Roulette, Olya and Jeff sit with William Taubman. Dr. Taubman is the Bertrand Snell Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Amherst College and the author of several books, including a biography of Nikita Khrushchev that won the Pulitzer Prize for biography in 2004, and, most recently, a biography of Mikhail Gorbachev. Of course, the three discuss G...

Of Campaigns, Democracy, and Campaigns for Democracy in Russia – Russian Roulette Episode 53 14.03.2018 55:34

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Olya and Jeff sit down with Vitali Shkliarov. Vitali is a Senior Adviser for Ksenia Sobchak’s presidential campaign. Previously, he worked for the Bernie Sanders campaign and for Obama for America. In 2016, alongside Dmitry Gudkov and Max Katz, he helped organize a campaign to field over 1,000 independent candidates in Moscow municipal elections. Olya, Jeff, an...

Of Religion and the State, and Writing About It – Russian Roulette Episode #52 27.02.2018 51:58

In a wide-ranging episode of Russian Roulette, Olya and Jeff sit down with Max Trudolyubov, a Senior Fellow at the Kennan Institute and writer for The Russia File blog, as well as an editor at Vedomosti, the independent Russian daily. They discuss Max’s efforts to make Russian commentators accessible to an English-language audience; Stalinism and the official view of Stalin today; religion and the...