Ukraine’s Verdun
It is not just Western officials who worry that Zelensky’s determination to defend Bakhmut at all costs will cripple his army’s effectiveness.
Robert Zaretsky
· 5 min read
Russia
A collection of 79 posts
Mearsheimer: Rigor or Reaction?
What John J. Mearsheimer gets wrong about Ukraine, international affairs, and much else besides.
Matt Johnson
· 21 min read
Democracy’s Trenches
The idea that the war in Ukraine is not our business is seductive but dangerously mistaken.
John Lloyd
· 11 min read
A Strange and Brutal Country
Adam Curtis’s new BBC series provides a unique insight into Russia’s late-twentieth-century collapse.
Christopher J. Snowdon
· 7 min read
Defying Russia’s Despot
Mikhail Khodorkovsky’s new book offers a profile in courage.
John Lloyd
· 10 min read
Revolt Against the Modern World
Putin is the offspring of a political culture based on insuperable adversity to democracy.
Vladimir Tismaneanu
· 6 min read
Red Letter Day
How an unknown teacher from Leningrad took on Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev—and ultimately won.
Robin Ashenden
· 12 min read
Horseshoe Theory Comes to Ukraine
Putin’s Western apologists don’t reflect the usual conflict between Left and Right—but rather comprise an example of both poles making common cause against the center.
The Quillette Editorial Board
· 7 min read
What the Left Keeps Getting Wrong About Ukraine
Vapid bromides about peace and negotiation are no substitute for policy and a frank acknowledgement of Russia’s responsibility for the conflict.
Matt Johnson
· 10 min read
Idealist and Idiot
Gorbachev’s legacy is partly to blame for the tyranny into which Russia has since slumped.
John Lloyd
· 9 min read
Lydia and the Vlads
An Estonian’s changing relationship with Russia.
Robin Ashenden
· 12 min read
The Roads Not Taken
A new book by Orlando Figes explores the role of Russian history in the Ukranian war.
John Lloyd
· 10 min read
If Europe Wants Peace, It Must Prepare for More War
Deterrence needs to be strong enough that it stands on its own feet with or without out American support.
Stephan Jensen
· 12 min read
Zelensky’s Terrible Dilemma—and Ours
Capitulation or Bloody Resistance?
John Lloyd
· 8 min read
Putinism and the Stalinist Legacy
From the beginning of the invasion of Ukraine, justifications offered for Moscow’s aggression must have struck most non-Russian observers as unrealistic, to say the least. Many observers were incredulous that any educated Russian could possibly believe Putin’s claim that Ukraine required “denazification and demilitarization,” or that the country
Tomislav Kardum
· 7 min read