The Rundown - Institute of Modern Russia

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Details: Media Must-Reads

The NATO Summit Winners and Losers, Russia’s Sexual Violence Problem, and Who Lives in Valdai Next to Putin

July 9-15

Details: 15 July 2016

In this week’s Western media highlights, James Stavridis recaps in Foreign Policy the recent NATO Summit in Warsaw, naming Putin its top loser. And Damic Marusic discusses in the American Interest a failed attempt to hush up a diplomatic incident involving an alleged American spy earlier in June that led to mutual expulsion of diplomats by Washington and Moscow. Meanwhile, in the Russian media RBC published a new investigation into the ownership of the land surrounding Putin’s presidential residence in Valdai. And Kirill Martynov dissects at Slon.ru the public reaction to the social media campaign hashtagged #IAmNotAfraidToSay.

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Putin’s New Détente, The Brain-Drain Myth, and the Problem with Russia’s Ethics

July 2–8

Details: 08 July 2016

In this week’s Western media highlights, Vladimir Frolov discusses in the Moscow Times the Kremlin’s recent attempts to decrease tension with the West, which, despite Putin’s arrogant rhetoric, has caused Russia economic woes and diplomatic isolation. And Leonid Bershidsky argues in Bloomberg View that Russia’s brain-drain problem might be exaggerated. Meanwhile, in the Russian media, Andrei Arkhanguelsky dissects what he calls the “moral catastrophe” that occurred in his country following the collapse of the Soviet Union.

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Turkey’s Sudden Change of Heart with Russia, Nikita Belykh’s Arrest, and Why the Kremlin Should Not Cheer Brexit

June 25 – July 1

Details: 01 July 2016

In this week’s Russian media highlights, foreign policy expert Vladimir Frolov explains the sudden shift in Turkey’s policy toward Russia and the sudden rapprochement between Erdogan and Putin. And Andrei Pertsev argues that the headline arrest of Nikita Belykh, a liberal governor of the Kirov region, might be politically motivated. Meanwhile, in the Western media, the Atlantic Council’s John Herbst writes that the West should not scrap its sanctions policy against Russia. And Mark Galeotti suggests that the Kremlin should cool its ardor over Brexit, as British secession might have serious repercussions for Russia..

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Putin and Brexit, What’s Behind the Kremlin’s War-Mongering, and the Possibility of an “Elite Consensus” in Russia

June 18–24

Details: 24 June 2016

In this week’s Western media highlights, Mary Dejevsky argues in the Independent that the West’s attempts to blame Brexit on Vladimir Putin actually exaggerate his power. And Mark Galeotti writes for Open Democracy that Russia’s recent military exercises do not necessarily mean it’s preparing for an imminent war. Meanwhile, in the Russian media, analysts discuss the country’s economic reforms and their viability in the current political climate.

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Russia’s Hooligan Soccer Fans, Khodorkovsky’s Plan for Post-Putin Russia, and the Anti-Magnitsky Campaign

June 11–17

Details: 17 June 2016

In this week’s Russian media highlights, Sergei Medvedev argues in Forbes.ru that the hooligan behavior of Russian soccer fans in many ways represents “the official policies and the collective consciousness of post-Crimea Russia.” And in an interview with Slon.ru, Mikhail Khodorkovsky discusses his plan to bring Russia back onto the democratic path. Meanwhile, in the Western media, experts discuss the Russian brain drain, the European Union’s sanctions policy, and the Kremlin’s smear campaign aimed at repealing the Magnitsky Act.

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America’s Old Habits on Russia, Putin’s Subversion of History, and Russia’s Cognitive Dissonance

June 4–10

Details: 10 June 2016

In this week’s Western media highlights, Thomas Graham criticizes in the National Interest existing attitudes in Washington regarding the U.S.-Russia relationship and suggests policymakers develop a new grand strategy for Russia. In the American Interest, Andrew Foxall dissects the Kremlin’s recent attempts to manipulate history to justify its policies. Meanwhile, in the Russian media, Vladimir Inozemtsev provides his plan for economic reform in Russia, and Alexander Auzan argues that the country’s democratic transition can only be successful if the public and elites reach consensus on the terms of the much-needed change.

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The Rise of the Russian Nationalism, the Secret of Putin’s Survival, and the Return of Stalin

May 28–June 3

Details: 03 June 2016

In this week’s Western media highlights, Richard Arnold discusses in The Washington Post the results of a new study of Russian nationalism, arguing that the Kremlin’s embrace of imperial nationalism poses a threat to the regime in the future. In the Russian media, Andrei Baunov, in his article for Carnegie.ru, compares the Greek and Russian Orthodoxy and their respective links to Russian politics. And professor Ivan Kurilla argues in RBC that in Russia, history has become “the language of politics.”

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Savchenko’s Release, Reforms Without Time, and Why Russian People Never Smile

21–27 May

Details: 27 May 2016

In this week’s Russian media highlights, commentator Tatiana Stanovaya argues in Carnegie.ru that Putin released the Ukrainian pilot Nadezhda Savchenko hoping to improve Russia’s relationship with the West, even though the exchange was a bad option for the Kremlin. And political scientist Alexander Rubtsov argues in Vedomosti that the current discussion of reform in Russia lacks a number of crucial components, such as “when” and “how.” In the Western media, professor Timothy Frye in Foreign Affairs offers an explanation for why Western experts tend to misunderstand Russian politics today. And in the Atlantic, Olga Khazan reports on a study that could shed some light on Russians’ dislike of smiling faces.

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Russian Politics Under Putin, The Kremlin’s Candidate, and the Chernobyl Anniversary

23–29 April

Details: 29 April 2016

In this week’s media highlights, Gleb Pavlovsky in Foreign Affairs reveals the key mechanisms of the Russian political system under Putin’s rule. And in Politico, Michael Crowley writes that the Kremlin has apparently picked its candidate in the current U.S. presidential campaign—Donald Trump. Meanwhile, in the Russian media, analysts discuss the possibility of Russia’s democratic transition and the consequences of the Chernobyl disaster.

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The Kremlin’s Perpetual Geopolitics, the Putin Myth, and Russia’s Long Search for Freedom

16–22 April

Details: 23 April 2016

In this week’s Western media highlights, Stephen Kotkin in Foreign Affairs analyzes Russia’s foreign policy, which for centuries has been characterized by “soaring ambitions that have exceeded the country’s capabilities.” And in Vox, Mark Galeotti argues that Vladimir Putin is not as powerful as many Western observers imagine. Meanwhile, in the Russian media, Vedomosti covers an analysis by a group of economists analyze the country’s grim outlook for the upcoming decade, while human rights activists discuss the century-long transformations that have occurred in the Russian government and the public mind.

Institute of Modern Russia

Latest Articles

The NATO Summit Winners and Losers, Russia’s Sexual Violence Problem, and Who Lives in Valdai Next to Putin

July 9-15

Putin’s New Détente, The Brain-Drain Myth, and the Problem with Russia’s Ethics

July 2–8

Turkey’s Sudden Change of Heart with Russia, Nikita Belykh’s Arrest, and Why the Kremlin Should Not Cheer Brexit

June 25 – July 1

Putin and Brexit, What’s Behind the Kremlin’s War-Mongering, and the Possibility of an “Elite Consensus” in Russia

June 18–24

Russia’s Hooligan Soccer Fans, Khodorkovsky’s Plan for Post-Putin Russia, and the Anti-Magnitsky Campaign

June 11–17

America’s Old Habits on Russia, Putin’s Subversion of History, and Russia’s Cognitive Dissonance

June 4–10

The Rise of the Russian Nationalism, the Secret of Putin’s Survival, and the Return of Stalin

May 28–June 3

Savchenko’s Release, Reforms Without Time, and Why Russian People Never Smile

21–27 May

Russian Politics Under Putin, The Kremlin’s Candidate, and the Chernobyl Anniversary

23–29 April

The Kremlin’s Perpetual Geopolitics, the Putin Myth, and Russia’s Long Search for Freedom

16–22 April

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