Russia

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RAND is renowned for its landmark studies of the Soviet government and military during the Cold War. Today, RAND explores Russia's economy, environment, and technology sector, and its complex and changing relations with NATO, Europe, Asia, and the United States.

  • Content

    Russia's War in Ukraine: Insights from RAND

    A vast body of previously published RAND research—as well as real-time insights from RAND experts—sheds light on important issues related to Russia's attack against Ukraine. These include Russia's strategy and military capabilities, the Ukrainian resistance, and how to address the refugee crisis.

    Mar 16, 2022

  • Commentary

    North Korea, Russia and China: The Developing Trilateral Imperialist Partnership

    There are no easy ways for the United States and its allies to counter the developing Russia-China–North Korea partnership. But there are options to consider and steps to take. There are also fissures in their relationships to exploit.

    Sep 13, 2023

Explore Russia

  • Protesters attend a rally against Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Tokyo, Japan, February 24, 2022, photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters

    Multimedia

    The Impact of the War in Ukraine on the Indo-Pacific Region

    Policymakers and scholars discuss the impact of the war in Ukraine on the Indo-Pacific. Presenters examined the conflict from the perspective of Japan and the United States as well as the possible impact it may have on the international order.

    Nov 10, 2022

  • RAND Weekly Recap

    Blog

    Lessons from the Pandemic, Diplomacy in Ukraine, Defending Taiwan: RAND Weekly Recap

    This week, we discuss lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic, planning to end the war in Ukraine, reducing deaths in law enforcement custody, and more.

    Nov 4, 2022

  • Russian Army military vehicles drive along a street in Armyansk, Crimea, February 24, 2022, photo by Stringer/Reuters

    Commentary

    Ukraine's Crimea Conundrum

    Ukraine could be prudent to manage expectations about potential Crimea outcomes. Kyiv and its Western partners might benefit from a careful analysis of choices.

    Nov 4, 2022

  • Russian President Putin attends a conference of heads of security and intelligence agencies of the Commonwealth of Independent States member countries remotely in Moscow, Russia, September 29, 2022, photo by Gavriil Grigorov/Sputnik via Reuters

    Commentary

    Nuclear Weapons and Putin's 'Holy War'

    Russia's nuclear saber-rattling has shifted the stakes of the war in Ukraine. But enabling Russia's blackmail doesn't prevent the catastrophic costs of nuclear escalation. It merely shifts those costs away from Russia and into the future, inviting other nuclear states to pull the same move for their conquests.

    Nov 2, 2022

  • Firefighters work to put out a fire in a residential building destroyed by a Russian drone strike in Kyiv, October 17, 2022, photo by Gleb Garanich/Reuters

    Commentary

    Planning Now for a Negotiated Outcome in Ukraine

    The United States should consider keeping open lines of communication with Russia. While it may not lead to peace in Ukraine any time soon, it could help mitigate the risks of dramatic escalation and indefinite war.

    Oct 28, 2022

  • A compilation of images showing global connections, chess pieces, and a member of the U.S. military, photos by piranka/Getty Images; Anusorn/Adobe Stock; and Lance Cpl. Mackenzie Binion/U.S. Marine Corps

    Report

    The Role of Information in U.S. Concepts for Strategic Competition

    Gray zone activities—acts of aggression that remain below the threshold of war—can be used to gain an edge in great-power competition. How can the information environment support U.S. responses to these activities?

    Oct 25, 2022

  • RAND Weekly Recap

    Blog

    Putin's Gambits, Xi Jinping, Machine Learning: RAND Weekly Recap

    This weekly recap focuses on Putin's latest “desperate measures” in Ukraine, support for Xi Jinping, whether machine-learning tools can tell if you're lying, and more.

    Oct 21, 2022

  • Russian Su-35 fighter aircraft taking part in an exercise after taking off from an airfield in Brest, Belarus, February 11, 2022, photo by Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation/Reuters

    Commentary

    Russia's Su-35: Are Its Military Aircraft Exports Headed for a Fall?

    Squeezed by sanctions and pressed to replace equipment destroyed in Ukraine, Russia's aerospace sector isn't likely to have combat aircraft to sell, even if it wants to. If purchasing countries start to change their minds and invest in drones and other less-expensive precision guided munitions, the market for Russian combat aircraft might start to rapidly decline.

    Oct 20, 2022

  • Russia claims to have successfully test-launched its nuclear-capable Sarmat intercontinental ballistic missile in Plesetsk, Russian Federation, in this photo released by the Russian Ministry of Defence, April 20, 2022, photo by Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation/Reuters

    Commentary

    Why Putin's Nuclear Gambit Is a Huge Mistake

    Russia is losing in Ukraine, and the rhetoric of Russian leaders has recently become ever more apocalyptic. The United States and its allies should be prepared in case Russia goes down the nuclear path, but fear should not drive the Western response to Russia's nuclear bluster.

    Oct 19, 2022

  • The Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, June 6, 2022, photo by Vlad Karkov / SOPA Images/Sipa USA

    Commentary

    The West and Russia the Day After

    In the 1990s, after the breakup of the USSR, the West adapted to and helpfully influenced the birth of 15 new republics. If liberalizing change comes anew, the West may seek to help Russia heal itself for the long term.

    Oct 19, 2022

  • Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a news conference following the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) leaders' summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, October 14, 2022, photo by Valery Sharifulin/Sputnik Pool via Reuters

    Commentary

    Why Vladimir Putin Is Likely to Be Disappointed

    None of the Kremlin's recent gambits—annexation, mobilization, or personnel shuffles—can overcome the larger problems facing Russia's military. And in the months ahead, its difficulties will only worsen.

    Oct 18, 2022

  • RAND Weekly Recap

    Blog

    Legalizing Cannabis, the Russian Nuclear Threat, Digital Offshoring: RAND Weekly Recap

    This weekly recap focuses on cannabis legalization, the Russian nuclear threat, the effects of digital offshoring, and more.

    Oct 14, 2022

  • An artist's rendering of WGS-11+, a U.S. military communications satellite to be operated by the U.S. Space Force in 2024, image by Boeing via U.S. Space Force

    Report

    How Do China and Russia Perceive U.S. Military Activities in Space?

    Chinese and Russian primary sources reflect a perception that U.S. space activities are threatening and demonstrate hostile intent. At the same time, they characterize their own, similar actions as nonthreatening. Washington, Beijing, and Moscow appear to be caught in an action-reaction cycle that perpetuates justifications for continued military action in space.

    Oct 11, 2022

  • Russian President Vladimir Putin attends an annual end-of-year news conference in Moscow, Russia, December 23, 2021, photo by Evgenia Novozhenina/Reuters

    Commentary

    Will Putin's War in Ukraine Continue Without Him?

    Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, there has been ongoing deliberation about how long Putin will remain in power. But the West should not assume a change of leadership would result in an end to the war, at least in the short term, as Putin's war could very well continue without Putin.

    Oct 10, 2022

  • Ukrainian Armed Forces soldiers set up High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems supplied by the United States in Ukraine, July 5, 2022, photo by EyePress News/Reuters

    Commentary

    Protecting Ukraine's Future Security

    Western support for Ukraine's future security could depend in part on how the war ends and the extent to which Moscow remains threatening. Ukraine can better protect its security through robust, tangible security ties with the West.

    Oct 10, 2022

  • RAND Weekly Recap

    Blog

    Microchips, Ukraine, Outer Space: RAND Weekly Recap

    This weekly recap focuses on how safeguarding Taiwan is the answer to America's microchip problem, a moment of clarity in Ukraine, new rules in space, and more.

    Oct 7, 2022

  • Russian President Vladimir Putin declares the annexation of four Ukrainian provinces at the Great Kremlin Palace in Moscow, Russia, September 30, 2022, photo by Grigory Sysoyev/Pool via Reuters

    Commentary

    A Moment of Strategic Clarity

    With the Russian mobilization and declared annexation, whatever prospects there were for a negotiated peace seem to have all but vanished. Any result short of Ukrainian victory will be, in the long run, a worse outcome for the rules-based international order.

    Oct 3, 2022

  • RAND Weekly Recap

    Blog

    Civic Education, Twitter's Bot Problem, Police Reform: RAND Weekly Recap

    This weekly recap focuses civic and citizenship education in America, addressing Twitter’s bot problem, why community engagement is key to police reform, and more.

    Sep 30, 2022

  • A Russian Sukhoi Su-24 attack aircraft makes a very low altitude pass by USS Donald Cook, April 12, 2016, photo by U.S. Navy

    Report

    Russian Coercive Signaling Toward the West

    In recent years, Russia has consistently engaged in signaling activities—military actions far short of direct aggression but often creating escalatory risks—toward the United States and its allies. Understanding what drives this behavior can help U.S. efforts to interpret future events.

    Sep 29, 2022

  • RAND Weekly Recap

    Blog

    Putin's Latest Threats, U.S. Policy in the Middle East, Disaster Recovery: RAND Weekly Recap

    This weekly recap focuses on Russia's troop mobilization and the ongoing war in Ukraine, U.S. policy in the Middle East, building a more diverse teacher workforce, and more.

    Sep 23, 2022