Institute of Modern Russia

Details

Opinions

Nowhere to retreat: Vladimir Putin is trapped in Ukraine

Details

22 March 2022

Michael Wasiura

By nearly every available measure, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been a disaster for Russia. Yet even as military losses mount and economic sanctions reduce the living standards of ordinary Russians, there is little reason to believe that the Kremlin will change course. By ordering his tanks to cross the border into Ukraine, Vladimir Putin may have made a catastrophic error, but it is an error that cannot be corrected so long as the current regime in Moscow remains in power.

Details

Analysis

World without Russia

Details

17 March 2022

Vladislav Inozemtsev

The war unleashed by Vladimir Putin in Ukraine will have grave consequences for Russia—political, economic, cultural. However, contrary to the Kremlin’s thinking, Russia’s importance on the world stage, which is being rapidly reconsidered today, is in fact not so great. Modern Russia is beginning to fade into the past.

Details

Analysis

A big war in Ukraine: The Kremlin’s goals and consequences for world politics

Details

16 March 2022

Mykola Vorobiov

On February 24, the Russian army crossed the Ukrainian border in several directions simultaneously, thus beginning a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Kremlin employed most of its armed forces—around 130,000 people, according to various estimates—that had accumulated along the Ukrainian border over the past four months.

Details

Analysis

Russian Jews: a complicated narrative

Details

08 March 2022

Dmitry Shlapentokh

Last October former Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev wrote an article focusing on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, an ethnic Jew. Medvedev mocked and insulted him, implying that Zelensky is a treacherous Jew and a disgusting person. The article was criticized for anti-Semitism and attempts at undermining Zelensky’s political status in Ukraine, but it also reflects complicated attitudes toward Jews in the Soviet Union and Russia.

Details

News

WAR IN UKRAINE: the world is at the critical junction, urgent action is needed now

Details

04 March 2022

IMR's president Pavel Khodorkovskiy calls for immediate action to shelter Ukraine's sky and prevent a humanitarian catastrophe.

Details

Analysis

From victor to aggressor: A metamorphosis

Details

03 March 2022

Ekaterina Mishina

On February 24, Russia launched a full-scale war against Ukraine under the pretenses of “demilitarization” and “denazification” of the country. Legal scholar and professor at the Free University Ekaterina Mishina analyzes the legal aspects of the war and looks at the cultural ramifications of the actions of the Russian Federation, which, by President Putin’s will, has turned from a victor nation into an aggressor nation.

Details

Analysis

Kremlin propaganda goes to war

Details

01 March 2022

Michael Wasiura

For weeks leading up to February 24, as Russian military equipment moved into position around Ukraine’s borders and as U.S. government spokespersons warned of an “imminent” attack, foreign and domestic Russia analysts did not expect that an actual war was about to begin. Many pointed to the lack of a “rally around the flag” propaganda campaign as evidence that the Kremlin was not preparing the public for a potentially generation-defining conflict. This expectation was a mistake. The Kremlin propaganda’s goal was not to rally support, but to suppress opposition. At least for now, this campaign has been a success.

Details

News

IMR’s statement on the situation in Ukraine

Details

24 February 2022

Institute of Modern Russia

Details

Analysis

Is the Kremlin ready to reject the Minsk Accords?

Details

21 February 2022

Mykola Vorobiov

Following the three-month escalation along the Ukrainian border, the Kremlin must resort to unpopular decisions—such as recognition of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics—in order to save face both before its own citizens and the collective West. Despite the colossal pressure, Kyiv is refusing to abide by the Minsk Accords on Moscow’s terms, and that means that the Kremlin’s blackmail may result in real military action. However, further escalation is unlikely in the upcoming few months: most likely, the Kremlin will continue destabilizing the situation inside Ukraine.

Details

Opinions

War and gas

Is Russia provoking tensions to boost gas prices?

Details

14 February 2022

Vladislav Inozemtsev

Is the surge in natural gas prices in Europe this winter related to the escalation in Ukraine following Putin’s ultimatum to the West and threat of war? According to economist Vyacheslav Inozemtzev, director of the Center for Research on Post-Industrial Societies (Moscow), the answer to this question is not as straightforward as it might appear.