Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Democrats have Saudi Arabia in the crosshairs, outraged at OPEC's slashing its oil output by 2 million barrels a day. Now there`s legislation in Congress to pause all weapons sales to the Saudis. Aaron David Miller, former State Department analyst, talks about if the U.S. could have leverage over Saudi Arabia.
President Biden says Vladimir Putin is not joking about his threats to use nuclear weapons to get out of the war in the Ukraine.
The risk of "Armageddon" is the highest it has been since the early 1960s, President Joe Biden said Thursday night as Russian losses in Ukraine prompt Russian officials to discuss the possible use of tactical nuclear weapons. Biden went further in his risk assessment than other U.S. officials.
Christopher Chivvis, a senior fellow and director of the Carnegie Endowment's American Statecraft Program, joins us to discuss.
Political and economic turmoil in Sofia has resulted in the fourth election in just 18 months. Should former Prime Minister Boyko Borissov return to power, the new government is unlikely to take a tough stance against Russia.
"It's a really important moment. The Russian government has been on the defensive since the Ukrainians launched their counteroffensive at the end of August. And now the referenda and annexation moves today are basically Vladimir Putin's attempt to flip the script."
The problem is that the viewpoints of the three parties are that they're diverging not converging.
NPR's A Martinez talks to Thomas de Waal of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace about Russian-organized annexation votes that Ukraine's allies say violate international law.
After President Vladimir Putin announced a "partial" military mobilization of Russian reservists for his war in Ukraine, many people are fleeing the country. The EU seems unable to resolve internal divisions over open borders, mainly due to opposition from former Soviet countries.
The referendums are aimed at Ukraine and the Western countries, as well as the Russian public. President Vladimir Putin is trying to regain the military initiative as well as the political narrative.