Glenn Diesen - Greater Eurasia Podcast Gilbert Doctorow: Kremlin Hawks Demand Escalation Against Ukraine & Retaliation Against Europe
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Jun 28, 2026 
Gilbert Doctorow, historian and author of the War Diaries volumes, offers expertise on Russian politics and public sentiment. He describes Kremlin hawks pressing for escalation against Ukraine and possible retaliation against Europe. He reports widespread war weariness in Russia and weighs strategic choices between striking Ukraine’s military infrastructure or targeting European suppliers.
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NATO Strikes Have Become Strategic Pressure On Russia
- NATO's long-range strikes have shifted from pinpricks to sustained attacks that reach deep into Russian territory.
- Western satellites, targeting, and well-supplied missiles/drones now make hitting Russian infrastructure and refineries routine, pressuring Kremlin deterrence.
Middle Class Russians Question Duration Of The War
- Gilbert Doctorow reports widespread war-weariness across Russian middle classes from conversations in Saint Petersburg.
- Examples include mortgage-holding real estate agents, a moving-company worker, and a notary all questioning why Putin is 'dragging it out.'
Civilian Life In Russia Feels The War's Reach
- The war's effects are visible in civilian life: drone threats, transport disruption, and cut communications in Crimea and border oblasts.
- Doctorow describes retirees stuck at a Crimean hillhouse because of bridge closures and fuel shortages.