Tag Archives: Russia

After centuries of neutrality, Sweden this year became the 32nd member of NATO, a decision triggered by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

In addition to adding a highly capable military force to the transatlantic alliance, the move fundamentally changes the security equation in the Baltic Sea region and northern Europe.

It also adds a new member state that has been a leading force in supporting Ukraine’s defense, resisting Russian aggression, and assisting democratic forces in Belarus.

So how does the West’s standoff with Russia look from Stockholm as Sweden becomes NATO’s newest member? Continue reading

Vladimir Putin is reshuffling his war cabinet, reassigning both his long-serving defense minister and his top security advisor. 

A government shakeup has long been expected following Putin’s inauguration for a fifth term as Kremlin leader, and more changes are apparently looming on the horizon. Continue reading

Like all politics, war is based to a degree on myths. And Russia’s war against Ukraine is no exception. It is based on Russian myths about itself, myths about Ukraine, and myths about the West.

Likewise, the Western response to Moscow’s aggression has also been constrained and limited by a series of its own myths – about Ukraine, about Russia, about NATO, and about the post-Cold War order. Continue reading

Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and Vladimir Putin’s efforts to restore Moscow’s imperial might have their roots in a series of deep seated – and deeply flawed – myths about history. Proponents of these myths include early 20th century White Russian thinkers such as Ivan Ilyin and contemporary Eurasianists like Aleksandr Dugin. Continue reading

Ukraine tries to hold off Russian gains on a stalemated front in the east amid manpower and artillery shortages. A defiant Ukraine continues to strike at energy infrastructure inside Russia despite U.S. objections. And a waiting game continues as a vital $60 billion in U.S. defense assistance to address Ukraine’s vital needs finally appears to be moving in the House of Representatives. Continue reading

Russia suffers its deadliest terrorist attack in two decades after ignoring a warning from U.S. intelligence – a warning that Vladimir Putin dismissed at the time as “blackmail.” Continue reading

In Vladimir Putin’s Russia, where institutions are weak and the rule of law nonexistent, all politics are essentially court politics. Continue reading

Two years ago, Vladimir Putin launched a war of aggression and a war of choice against Ukraine — and he expected it to be a cakewalk. It wasn’t. Rather than a quick shock-and-awe assault that would spark regime change in Kyiv, Ukraine instead fought Russia to a draw – driving its forces away from the capital and fighting them to a standstill in the Donbas. Continue reading