Russia Decoded
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February 1, 2026: Holy War in Ukraine
February 1, 2026: Holy War in Ukraine Despite suffering over 1.2 million casualties in Ukraine—eclipsing Soviet losses in the Afghan conflict by orders of magnitude—Russian society remains strikingly silent compared to the civil strife that once challenged the Kremlin’s authority in the 1980s. This domestic compliance rests, in part, on Russian state media’s framing of
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January 25, 2026: Putin’s Art of the Deal
January 25, 2026: Putin’s Art of the Deal After weeks of silence, Russian state media has suddenly pivoted toward a “let’s make a deal” narrative, signaling a startling shift in tone as high-stakes Ukraine negotiations revive in Moscow and Abu Dhabi. Vladimir Putin has returned to the airwaves not as an aggressor, but as a
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January 18, 2026: Europe Between a Rock and a Hard Place
January 18, 2026: Europe Between a Rock and a Hard Place President Donald Trump’s announcement of punitive tariffs targeting European allies who oppose the U.S. acquisition of Greenland has plunged NATO into a state of unprecedented chaos. In Moscow, Russian state media openly relishes the spectacle, portraying Western leaders as feckless and hopelessly paralyzed in
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January 11, 2026: Might Makes Right?
January 11, 2026: Might Makes Right? Russia’s recent Oreshnik missile strike on the Ukrainian city of Lviv, not far from the Polish border, is a new benchmark in the Kremlin’s campaign of intimidation against the West. As the Kremlin gauges the unpredictability of the second Trump administration in Venezuela and Greenland and tests the limits
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January 4, 2026: Moscow’s Muted Response on Venezuela
January 4, 2026: Moscow’s Muted Response on Venezuela While the world reacted with shock to the dramatic U.S. seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on January 3, the Kremlin’s response remains strikingly circumspect, fueling speculation of a high-stakes backstage deal and a “new Yalta” establishing spheres of influence from Caracas to Kyiv. In this episode,
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