Russia Archives - Robert Lansing Institute

Kazakhstan’s Pivot to China for Nuclear Power: Strategic Choice and Geopolitical Signal

Kazakhstan's decision in 2025 to select a Chinese company over Russia's Rosatom to build its first nuclear power plant marks a pivotal moment in Central Asian energy geopolitics. This move carries…

May 30, 2025China, Kazakhstan, Russia

Intelligence ops

Russia Exploits the IAEA to Steal Chinese Nuclear Technology

The Kremlin has institutionalized a vast effort to expropriate Chinese nuclear technologies under the guise of international cooperation. This policy, sanctioned at the highest political level, involves diplomats, intelligence operatives,…

May 29, 2025Austria, China, Rosatom, Russia, SVR

Intelligence ops National Security Propaganda and Disinformation

Orthodoxy and Propaganda: Analyzing Tucker Carlson’s Interview with Vadim Novinsky

Tucker Carlson’s interview with Vadim Novinsky represents a calculated piece of Russian information warfare, designed to serve Kremlin interests at a time of heightened geopolitical tension. Novinsky, an oligarch-turned-churchman with dual…

May 29, 2025Russia, USA

Geopolitics Governance

Why Russia Is Not Contractually Capable

Russia’s capacity to act as a trustworthy and legally compliant contracting party has eroded significantly due to its widespread violations of international law, politicization of contracts, weaponization of energy and trade, disregard…

May 28, 2025Russia, Ukraine, USA

Conflict Geopolitics National Security Warfare

The Suwałki Corridor Crisis: An Analysis of a Possible Russian Offensive and NATO Response Scenarios

A Russian offensive against the Suwałki Corridor would represent a direct assault on NATO territory and trigger Article 5, initiating full-scale war between Russia and the Alliance. The most plausible trigger would be…

May 27, 2025NATO, Russia, USA

Conflict Geopolitics Propaganda and Disinformation

Russian Recruitment of Togolese Citizens and the Revival of Neo-Colonial Militarism in Africa

As Russia’s war in Ukraine enters its third year, the Kremlin has expanded its global recruitment strategy, increasingly drawing from African nations like Togo to supplement its depleted manpower. Under the guise of…

May 26, 2025Russia, Togo, Ukraine

Conflict Geopolitics National Security

Buffer Zone or Expanding Front? Putin’s Strategic Shift in Ukraine and the Contradiction of Trump’s Narrative

Russian President Vladimir Putin recently declared that Russia may need to create a “buffer zone” inside Ukrainian territory to protect Russian border regions from drone and artillery attacks. This statement, while framed…

May 23, 2025Russia, Ukraine, USA

Intelligence ops National Security

Eyes in the Dark: Russia’s Hacking of Border Surveillance Cameras in EU States – Strategic Goals and Threats to NATO

In the evolving theater of hybrid warfare, cyber espionage has become a key instrument of state power. Recent reports and security assessments indicate a disturbing trend: Russian state-linked hackers have increasingly…

May 22, 2025China, EU, GRU, NATO, Russia

Democracy Geopolitics Governance Intelligence ops National Security

“Viktor Orbán’s Russian Alignment: A Threat from Within the European Union”

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has pursued a foreign and domestic policy agenda that increasingly diverges from the European Union’s core values and strategic goals. His deepening alliance with Russian…

May 20, 2025Hungary, Russia, Ukraine, USA

Geopolitics Intelligence ops Propaganda and Disinformation

Viktoria Fortuna’s Territorial Claims on Ukrainian Budjak: A Kremlin-Linked Challenge to Regional Stability

Viktoria Fortuna, a rising far-right populist figure in Moldova, has sparked political alarm by asserting territorial claims on Ukraine’s region—territory with no legal or historical justification under Moldovan state policy.…

May 19, 2025Moldova, Russia, Ukraine

Russia