Chain Reaction

This week we’d like to introduce a special episode recorded in collaboration with FPRI’s BMB Russia, a news brief that brings together the latest on Russia’s economy, politics, business, and political risk environment. In this special series hosted by FPRI Fellow and BMB Russia founder, Aaron Schwartzbaum, we’ll explore politics, economics, and their intersection in Russia, Ukraine, and the post-Soviet space and beyond. This week, Felix Light stops by to discuss Russia's upcoming Duma elections, what they mean, who's involved, and what to expect. Get full access to FPRI Insights at fpriinsights.substack.com/subscribe

To discuss recent events in Ukraine, Aaron speaks this week with Rob Lee, a FPRI Eurasia Fellow, about his recent report, Russia's Coercive Diplomacy. The conversation explores Rob's research about Russia's military build up around Ukraine and what that could signal for Russian coercive signaling during Zapad 2021. Get full access to FPRI Insights at fpriinsights.substack.com/subscribe

The Iranian government is accused of using a loitering munition to strike the tanker Mercer Street, killing two crew members. The attack is the latest incident at sea involving the Iranians and international shipping. To discuss Iranian strategy in the Persian Gulf, Aaron speaks with Afshon Ostovar, an Associate Professor of National Security Affairs at the Naval Postgraduate School, about escalation dynamics and Iranian strategy. Get full access to FPRI Insights at fpriinsights.substack.com/subscribe

On this episode of Chain Reaction, Aaron speaks with Chris Dougherty, senior fellow for defense at CNAS and the co-lead of the CNAS gaming lab, about a recent article he wrote for War on the Rocks, Gradually and then Suddenly: Explaining the Navy's Strategic Bankruptcy. Get full access to FPRI Insights at fpriinsights.substack.com/subscribe

In this special series hosted by FPRI Fellow and BMB Russia founder, Aaron Schwartzbaum, we’ll explore politics, economics, and their intersection in Russia, Ukraine, and the post-Soviet space and beyond. This week Aaron speaks with Fabian Burkhardt, a research fellow at the Leibniz Institute for East and Southeast European Studies, about Russian PM Mikhail Mishustin, his agenda, and what his role means for governance in Russia. Get full access to FPRI Insights at fpriinsights.substack.com/subscribe

President Biden just finished a three-country trip, where he met with world leaders in the United Kingdom, Belgium, and in Switzerland. The main focus of the trip was to reinvigorate U.S. alliances in Europe and with NATO. To discuss the trip, Aaron spoke this week with Rachel Ellehuus, the deputy director and a senior fellow with the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Get full access to FPRI Insights at fpriinsights.substack.com/subscribe

This week we’d like to introduce a special series recorded in collaboration with FPRI’s BMB Russia, a news brief that brings together the latest on Russia’s economy, politics, business, and political risk environment. In this special series hosted by FPRI Fellow and BMB Russia founder, Aaron Schwartzbaum, we’ll explore politics, economics, and their intersection in Russia, Ukraine, and the post-Soviet space and beyond. This week Aaron is joined by Isabel Linzer, a research analyst on technology and democracy at Freedom House, and Nick Trickett, a specialist on Russia’s political economy and the author of the Russia section of Freedom Houses’ Nations in Transit report, to discuss the state of Russian democracy, as well as Russia’s electoral and internet freedom. Get full access to FPRI Insights at fpriinsights.substack.com/subscribe

On this episode, Aaron speaks with Mike Benitez, a U.S. military officer and creator of the Merge newsletter, about the challenges of finding mobile rocket launchers in an urban environment.The views expressed in this episode do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of the Department of Defense, or the U.S. Government. Get full access to FPRI Insights at fpriinsights.substack.com/subscribe

This week, Aaron spoke with Steven Feldstein, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, about his new book, The Rise of Digital Repression: How Technology is Reshaping Power, Politics, and Resistance (Oxford University Press, 2021). Get full access to FPRI Insights at fpriinsights.substack.com/subscribe

The relationship between the Russian Federation and Republic of Turkey is one of the most important bilateral relationships in Eurasia today. This week Aaron chats with Robert Hamilton and Anna Mikulska, authors of FPRI's latest report "Russian-Turkish Relations and Their Implications for the West '' about the major drivers of the bilateral relationship and its likely future trajectory.Read the report here: https://www.fpri.org/article/2021/04/cooperation-competition-and-compartmentalization-russian-turkish-relations-and-their-implications-for-the-west/The views expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official policy or position of the U.S. Army War College, U.S. Army, or the Department of Defense. Get full access to FPRI Insights at fpriinsights.substack.com/subscribe