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In the Human Interest – Mel Gurtov

In the Human Interest – Mel Gurtov

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Tag: Russia

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.…

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