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The Power Vertical

The Power Vertical is a blog and podcast for Russia wonks and Kremlin watchers by Brian Whitmore. It covers emerging and developing trends in Russian politics, shining a spotlight on the high-stakes power struggles, machinations, and clashing interests that shape Kremlin policy today.

Host and Eurasia Center Senior Fellow Brian Whitmore invites guest experts to deliver their insights and analysis in this weekly podcast. The Atlantic Council and the Charles T. McDowell Center for Global Studies at the University of Texas at Arlington co-sponsor this production.

The Russia Tomorrow series

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The Eurasia Center’s mission is to enhance transatlantic cooperation in promoting stability, democratic values and prosperity in Eurasia, from Eastern Europe and Turkey in the West to the Caucasus, Russia and Central Asia in the East.

Content

UkraineAlert

Sep 19, 2024

Ukraine’s innovative defense industry can play a key role in Western security

By Pavlo Verkhniatskyi

Ukraine's innovative defense industry has emerged as the country's secret weapon in the war with Russia and can a play a key role in strengthening the West, writes Pavlo Verkhniatskyi .

Conflict Defense Industry

Report

Sep 19, 2024

NATO-Russia dynamics: Prospects for reconstitution of Russian military power

By Andrew A. Michta, Joslyn Brodfuehrer

The Russian Federation’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, brought war to the North Atlantic Alliance’s doorstep—altering the political-military dynamics between NATO and its neighbor to the east. Since the Russian invasion, NATO has been undergoing a dramatic change that has impacted its plans, command structure, Force Model, and capabilities requirements. The effectiveness of this change must be gauged against the adversary’s ability to field its forces and resource them in a way that negatively impacts the Supreme Allied Commander Europe’s ability to execute the new regional plans. The delta between how quickly Russia can rebuild its military and how quickly NATO can rearm, especially the European allies, will define the risk level for the Alliance should deterrence fail. A credible assessment of the speed with which Russia can reconstitute and expand its military—especially its land forces component, which has been significantly attritted during the current campaign in Ukraine—is crucial to accurately assessing NATO’s overall force posture and ability to respond should Russia choose to attack a member of the Alliance. Here, the expertise and assessments of the United States’ allies most exposed to the Russian threat along the eastern flank offer valuable insights from the frontline, augmented by their regional expertise and understanding of Russian culture, politics, and military infused with centuries of experience of living next door to Russia.

Central Europe Eastern Europe

New Atlanticist

Sep 18, 2024

Dispatch from Kyiv: The Kursk offensive is working, but Ukrainians are worried about US wobbling

By John E. Herbst

Morale in Kyiv has been boosted by the early success of the incursion into Kursk, but tempered by concerns over US support.

Defense Policy Human Rights

UkraineAlert

Sep 17, 2024

Putin is becoming entangled in his own discredited red lines

By Peter Dickinson

Putin is attempting to impose a new red line over the use of Western long-range missiles inside Russia, but Ukraine has already been using these weapons in occupied regions claimed by Russia for more than a year, writes Peter Dickinson.

Conflict Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

Sep 17, 2024

Countering Russia’s campaign to erase Ukrainian cultural identity

By Mercedes Sapuppo

International initiatives by Google and others are helping to preserve Ukraine's national heritage amid a Russian campaign to erase Ukrainian cultural identity and destroy heritage sites across the country, writes Mercedes Sapuppo.

Civil Society Conflict

UkraineAlert

Sep 17, 2024

Time to make Russia worry about the West’s red lines in Ukraine

By Mykola Bielieskov

Even talking about Western red lines in Ukraine will no doubt be seen as too provocative by some, but it is now obvious that allowing Russia uncontested escalation dominance has been a costly blunder, writes Mykola Bielieskov.

Conflict Defense Policy

New Atlanticist

Sep 16, 2024

How Ukraine’s Kursk incursion echoes the Gettysburg campaign

By Gregg Curley

Viewing the Kursk incursion through the lens of the climactic campaign of the US Civil War offers a relevant framework for interpreting Ukraine’s motivations, possible outcomes, and long-term strategic objectives.

Conflict Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

Sep 12, 2024

Concerns grow over possible Russian sabotage of undersea cables

By Aleksander Cwalina

The United States has recently detected indications of increased Russian military activity around key undersea cables, fueling concerns over a possible escalation in the Kremlin's hybrid war against the west, writes Aleksander Cwalina.

Conflict Defense Policy

UkraineAlert

Sep 12, 2024

Why Ukraine will remain central to the future of European security

By Silvester Nosenko

Although it is currently common to talk about the West as a unitary actor in the context of the Russian-Ukrainian War, the stakes actually differ significantly on the two opposite sides of the Atlantic. Most obviously, if Russia succeeds in Ukraine and goes further, Europe will become a battlefield. With this in mind, it makes […]

Conflict European Union

New Atlanticist

Sep 10, 2024

What does Iran get for sending ballistic missiles to Russia?

By Mark N. Katz

On Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken revealed that Tehran has delivered shipments of ballistic missiles to Moscow, raising new concerns about the depth of the Iran-Russia relationship.

Conflict Iran

Experts