Russia

Ukraine has Never been America's War

by Lawrence Wittner

A historian of diplomacy and peace movements argues that efforts to blame the war on American imperialism don't stand up to scrutiny. 

In Post-Soviet Russia, Children Have Been Propaganda Instruments

by Clementine Fujimura

Russian regimes since the fall of Communism have inherited and created crises of mass orphanage; their policy responses to parentless children have been informed by politics and nationalism at the expense of child welfare. Removal of orphans from Ukraine to Russia is just the latest instance. 

The Mexican War Suggests Ukraine May End Up Conceding Crimea. World War I Suggests the Price May Be Tragic if it Doesn't

by Alan J. Singer

Ukrainian leadership would likely compare the abandonment of its claim to Crimea to be an injustice on par with Mexico's surrender of California and the southwest to the United States. Is it the least bad alternative? 

How to End the War in Ukraine and Build Peace

by Michael Brenes

"The foundation of a progressive foreign policy, in my view, entails providing material support to countries suffering from deprivation and aggression in multiple forms—with such assistance reflecting the security and democratic interests of the United States and its people."

Putin Also Making War on Ukrainian Memory

by Richard Ovenden

Victory in war involves imposing one's own version of history on the next generation. Russian forces appear to be targeting Ukrainian archives where records of KGB surveillance and Soviet-era repression of Ukrainian civilians are held, part of an effort to delegitimize claims of independence. 

Will Ukraine be Remembered as the War of Surprises?

by Rajan Menon

Neither the perceived threat of NATO expansion nor Putin's alleged fears of liberalization explain the move to an all-out invasion. This uncertainty remains confounding, as has the progress of the war. 

Ignoring International Relations Scholars is Leading the US to Mistakes on Ukraine

by Max Abrahms

Punditry on the Ukraine-Russia war ignores a host of scholarship on international relations that suggests Russian apprehension about NATO is a legitimate influence on Putin's actions, and not just an excuse for aggression. 

The Left Should Reject an Alliance with the Far Right Against Ukraine

by Michael Kazin

The American left has always approached foreign policy with reluctance to impose America's will on the world. But that doesn't mean they should allow Russia to have its way in Ukraine. 

Don't Forget the Private Sorrows of Ukraine

by Walter G. Moss

In Ukraine, as with all wars, statistical accounts of death and destruction risk depersonalizing the killing and obscuring the humanity of the victims. 

Whose "Red Lines"?

by Lawrence Wittner

Far from promoting clarity and stability, when powerful nations declare "red lines" in their dealings with the world they declare their intentions to impose their will on others. Peace-promoting red lines must be drawn by more robust international cooperation. 

Is Ukraine Headed for a Cease Fire? And Is That the Best Option?

by Sergey Radchenko

After an essential stalemate between 1951 and 1953, a cease-fire in Korea enabled the parties to avoid both defeat and the cost of victory. Is this the best chance for resolving the war in Ukraine? 

1918's Armistice Offers an Unsettling Model for Ending the Ukraine Conflict

by James Thornton Harris

Marshal Foch of France described the Treaty of Versailles as a "an armistice for 20 years." In Ukraine, the end of the shooting war will be only the first step in securing peace. 

Stephen Kotkin on How the Ukraine War Could End

The historian of Russia and the USSR argues that Putin's invasion will ultimately be seen as a disaster for Russia. Its unclear, however, if that view is sufficiently widespread in Russia to change Putin's strategic outlook or the regime. 

Ukrainian Civilians' Experience of Violence

by Anne Applebaum and Nataliya Gumenyuk

Russian soldiers exposed to propaganda that Ukrainians were unwilling subjects of their local governments expected civilian support to capture political leaders; when this expectation was confounded, they unleashed violence. 

The Network Helping Russia's War Resisters Escape

“In a situation where everyone is against you, including your own relatives, who think that you are a traitor and are ready to hang you from the nearest lamppost, I was extremely pleased to discover that there are people who don’t know you at all, who’ve never seen you, and they are ready to help,” said Oleg Zavyalov, 31.

Russia's Courageous War Resisters

by Lawrence Wittner

While most Russians have chosen silence in the wake of Putin's harsh anti-dissent measures, and many military-aged men have opted to leave the country, a core of protesters have braved violence and imprisonment to denounce the Ukraine invasion. 

Nuclear Fears Clouding Thinking on Ukraine

by Timothy Snyder

"Once we turn our attention to a hypothetical exchange of missiles, we get to imagine that we are the victims.  Suddenly the actual war no longer seems to matter, since our lives (we imagine) are at risk.  And the Ukrainians seem to be at fault."

On Ukraine, International Law is Against Russia—But to What Consequence?

by Lawrence Wittner

If the United Nations can define the rules of international relations, but sufficiently powerful nations can flout them without consequence, it's time for a change in global governance. 

Do Sanctions on Russia Portend a Return to the Interwar Order of Trade Blocs?

by Carl J. Strikwerda

The economic response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine has raised the specter of a new Cold War. But a better—and scarier—analogy might be the drastic contraction of global trade and the rise of colonial and imperial trade blocs between the World Wars. 

Training Ukrainian Troops in the US Part of a Long History of Military Advising as Foreign Policy

by Syrus Jin

Training foreign military officers in the US has, since the 1950s, aimed at more than military success. It's been a vehicle for developing foreign political leadership and expanding US influence.