Russia’s Victory Day public holiday, celebrated on May 9, has undergone a major transformation in Putin’s Russia. Historically, it was a day of somber commemoration, and its main leitmotif was “Never again.” Under Putin, the holiday has become increasingly militaristic, with the memorial aspect now overshadowed by the far more belligerent slogan “We can do it again.” How did this happen, and what role does Victory Day play in the Putin regime today?
Podcast host Alex Gabuev is joined by Sergey Vakulenko, a senior fellow at Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center and leading expert on Russia’s energy sector, to discuss the state of the Russian oil and gas sector, which remains a crucial source of revenue for Putin’s war machine.
Podcast host Alex Gabuev is joined by Sergey Radchenko, historian and professor of international relations at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and author of the book To Run the World: The Kremlin’s Cold War Bid for Global Power, to discuss the history of Russia-China relations and their current state.
Podcast host Alex Gabuev is joined by his colleague, Artyom Shraibman, a non-resident fellow at Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, and one of the most prominent experts on Belarus, to discuss Belarus’ key role in European security.
Podcast host Alex Gabuev is joined by Farida Rustamova and Margarita Liutova, independent journalists and authors of the Faridaily English-language newsletter, to discuss the shocking suicide of Russia’s transport minister, Roman Starovoit, and what it tells us about the pressure inside Putin’s power system.
Podcast host Alex Gabuev is joined by Nathaniel Reynolds, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Program who worked in senior Russia policy roles during Joe Biden’s presidency, to discuss the recent NATO summit in The Hague and the implications for Ukraine, Russia, and Europe.