Podcasts Russian Policy in the Middle East: A Conversation with Prof. Mark Katz 31 Jan 2023 Prof. Katz discusses Russia's relations with Iran, Syria, Israel and other countries; points out how Russia has effectively handled its Middle East ties in the midst of war in Ukraine;…
BLOG Post #361: Ukraine’s Future: Peace Through War? 14 Jan 202315 Jan 2023 Hopes and Realities Ukraine’s President Zelensky had a fairly successful visit to Washington last month, returning home with promises of more American weapons and unqualified US backing for Ukraine’s war…
BLOG Post #360 The Threat Business: China or Russia? 2 Jan 20233 Jan 2023 Dual Enemies For those in charge of US national security, the central challenge is identifying threats and determining how to counter them. The Biden administration has cast China and Russia,…
BLOG Post #352: Can Russia’s Use of a Nuclear Weapon in the Ukraine War Be Prevented? 13 Oct 202225 Oct 2022 (The podcast of this blog is at https://www.podserve.fm/episodes/76143/62-on-dealing-with-russia-nuclear-weapons-and-the-off-ramp.mp3) President Biden surprised his top advisers along with everyone else when, at a fundraising event, he referred to “Armageddon” in the…
BLOG Post #351: Predictions of a Ukraine Victory are Premature 29 Sep 202229 Sep 2022 For the podcast of this blog, see the archive at https://wordpress.com/post/melgurtov.com/2247 Putin Under Fire Something extraordinary is happening in the course of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Putin is taking a…
BLOG Post #347: The Great Energy Game in Europe 12 Aug 202214 Aug 2022 The audio of this blog is at https://www.podserve.fm/episodes/67441/56-the-great-energy-game-in-europe.mp3 The Politics of Russia’s Energy Exports It won’t be long before winter descends on Europe. Before it does, most European countries…
BLOG Post #342: Europe’s Uneasy Unity on the War in Ukraine 28 Jun 202226 Jun 2022 The audio of this blog is available at https://www.podserve.fm/episodes/63347/50-europes-uneasy-unity-in-the-ukraine-war.mp3. Welcoming the leaders of Finland and Sweden to Washington on May 19, President Biden said that “what makes NATO strong…
BLOG Post #340: The Arsenal, But Not of Democracy 4 Jun 202210 Jun 2022 The audio version of this blog is at https://www.podserve.fm/episodes/61577/48-an-arsenal-but-not-of-democracy.mp3 America is awash with weapons, and the tragic consequences are before us every day. The world is also awash with…
BLOG Post #336: Loose Lips Can Sink Peace 9 May 20228 May 2022 During World War II, US sailors were warned: Loose lips sink ships. A similar warning should have gone out to all US officials in recent days—and the President should…
BLOG Post #335: The Coming Old New Order 30 Apr 2022 From Cold War to Cold War A principal lesson of the war in Ukraine is that the Cold War never ended. German reunification, the Soviet Union’s collapse, new entries…
BLOG Post #333: Crimes of War 13 Apr 202211 Apr 2022 The audio version is at https://www.podserve.fm/episodes/56499/42-crimes-of-war.mp3 Mass Violence in Our Times In just the past few years, we have witnessed mass violence directed at innocent people in many places: China’s…
BLOG Post #331: When Will It End, and How? 30 Mar 202229 Mar 2022 The podcast of this blog is at https://www.podserve.fm/episodes/55380/40-when-will-it-end-and-how.mp3 How will it end? In the wake of Ukraine’s stunning and stubborn resistance to Putin’s invasion, the question whose answer once seemed…
BLOG Post #330: An Engagement Moment for the US and China 20 Mar 202222 Mar 2022 Listen to this blog at https://www.podserve.fm/episodes/54894/39-an-engagement-moment-with-china-on-ukraine.mp3 One of the more interesting developments in Putin’s war on Ukraine is the retreat of China from full-fledged support of Russia. When the Russian…
BLOG Post #329: Thinking About the Unthinkable in the Ukraine Crisis 11 Mar 202212 Mar 2022 The audio version is at https://www.podserve.fm/episodes/54040/38-thinking-about-the-unthinkable-in-the-ukraine-crisis.mp3 We might be inclined to think that the most urgent decisions on Ukraine have been made: decisions on military aid to the Ukraine government,…
BLOG Post #328: Putin’s Nightmare 4 Mar 20224 Mar 2022 Audio version available at https://www.podserve.fm/episodes/53431/37-putins-nightmare.mp3. Three Silver Linings In the midst of a crisis with great loss of life and property, it might be unseemly to suggest that there are…
BLOG Post #327: Putin’s War 24 Feb 202225 Feb 2022 Shortly after Joe Biden took office, a distinguished political science professor (whom I won’t name) advised the new administration to engage with Russia in order to stop the Chinese threat.…
BLOG Post #326: Employing Confidence Building Measures in the Ukraine Crisis 18 Feb 2022 The audio of this blog is at https://www.podserve.fm/episodes/52277/35-confidence-building-measures-in-the-ukraine-crisis.mp3. Last week a tiny back-page item in the New York Times reported that the president of Ukraine had come to believe…
BLOG Post #325: China’s Careful Dance Around the Ukraine Crisis 6 Feb 20225 Feb 2022 The podcast of this blog may be heard at https://www.podserve.fm/episodes/50923/34-china-russia-relations-and-the-ukraine-crisis.mp3 Reports out of Washington suggest worry over a Russia-China partnership that would facilitate Vladimir Putin’s presumed ambition to absorb Ukraine…
BLOG Post #324 – How to Avoid War Over Ukraine 21 Jan 2022 The threat of a major war hangs over eastern Europe. Four different negotiating forums between Russia and NATO on the Ukraine situation have not gone well. The two sides…
BLOG Post #320: Putin’s Democracy Problem: Civil Society and Ukraine 11 Dec 2021 Vladimir Putin is trying to accomplish two very dangerous tasks at once: the destruction of civil society in Russia, and the withering away of international support for a democratic Ukraine.…
In the Human Interest - Mel Gurtov 