This is a legacy website featuring a collection of work by the Carnegie Endowment’s global network of scholars on topics including Russia, Ukraine, Eurasia, and the post-Soviet states. This site is a product of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace based in Washington, D.C. For more recent work by Carnegie scholars in this field, please visit Carnegie Politika.
It remains to be seen whether the Russian and American presidents can establish a productive relationship for the remainder of Obama’s term and what role Susan Rice, the new U.S. national security advisor, will have in shaping U.S. policy toward Russia.
The two-year-old Syrian conflict sharply escalated in recent weeks, hence necessitating a renewed U.S.-Russian effort to find a solution to the crisis and solve inner tensions within the Syrian opposition.
Russia is re-emerging as a power in the Middle East. Yet Moscow’s objectives today are vastly different.
In order to develop an effective strategic approach toward Russia, Europeans must deepen their understanding of the changing Russian realities.
Cooperation between the United Starts and Russia on ballistic missile defense (BMD) remains unlikely.
Russia is clearly concerned with the rise of Islamist extremists in the Middle East and is looking for ways to prevent destabilization in the region. At the same time, it is seeking to improve ties with various Arab countries.
Hillary Rodham Clinton was seen as unwelcome in Russia for her criticism and her attitude, but her work with her Russian counterpart, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, was productive on a range of issues.
Enhancing Russia’s soft power is one of the Kremlin’s goals. However, Russia’s image in the world is often negative, and, to be really attractive, Russia will need to change.
It will be difficult for Washington and Moscow to drag the Syrian regime and opposition to the negotiating table. But for now, the U.S.-Russian effort is the only chance for peace.
The formation of a Russian Special Operations Command is meant to counteract any threats that an increasingly volatile Syria and an unstable Afghanistan will pose to the Russian state.