Russia's peacekeeping mission in Kazakhstan and security demands in Europe

In the past two weeks, Russia has demonstrated its capacity to project military power at different corners of its periphery, sending troops to Kazakhstan for a small but symbolic peacekeeping operation and pressing sweeping security demands in Europe, where the West has accused the Kremlin of plotting a war of aggression against Ukraine. The Naked Pravda reviews three essays by political analysts in Russia about the nation’s evolving geopolitics and speaks to two experts about the events in Kazakhstan and changing dialogue between Moscow and Washington.

Timestamps for this week’s episode:

• (5:22) Reviewing National Research University Higher School of Economics International Relations deputy director Dmitry Novikov’s January 9, 2022, essay on how many in Moscow already see Joe Biden as a lame duck president.
• (6:44) Reviewing Russian International Affairs Council director-general Andrey Kortunov’s January 4, 2022, essay about the fundamental “discrepancies” today between Russian and Western worldviews.
• (9:24) Reviewing PIR-Center consultant Alexander Kolbin’s January 12, 2022, essay on Russia’s struggle against “self-censorship” and fight for a “legitimate basis” for its own “cultural, economic, and military expansion.”
• (13:09) EurasiaNet Central Asia editor Peter Leonard answers questions about the CSTO peacekeeping mission in Kazakhstan and about how the nation’s political system compares to Russia’s.
• (25:44) Russia in Global Affairs editor-in-chief Fyodor Lukyanov discusses the logic behind Moscow’s grievances in Europe and the tensions still escalating in Ukraine.

Producer, sound editing, and mixing — Kevin Rothrock

Send any questions or comments to kevin@meduza.io

Theme Music — Victor Davydov