RUSSIA NEWS & INFORMATION – Johnson’s Russia List contents & links :: JRL 2021-#246 :: Friday, 17 December 2021

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Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2021-#246 :: Friday, 17 December 2021
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1. The Sun (UK): ‘WE MUST WIN’ Inside the crack Ukrainian unit dug into WW1-style trenches just yards from the Russian army on the brink of invasion.
2. Intellinews: Ben Aris, Russia won’t invade Ukraine. This crisis is more serious than that. There is very little chance that Russia will invade Ukraine, but the deals that Russian President Vladimir Putin is asking for will in effect return Europe to Cold War-like relations with Russia.
3. Valdai Discussion Club: Andrey Sushentsov, Red Lines of Russia and the Ukrainian Problem – valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/red-lines-of-russia-and-the-ukrainian-problem/
4. Responsible Statecraft: Katrina vanden Heuvel and James Carden, Hang up the magical thinking and try strategic empathy on for size. The U.S. approach to Russia hasn’t been working for years, mostly because it’s been spearheaded by alarmists in the blob.
5. Moscow Times: Russia Accuses NATO of Ignoring De-Escalation Proposals.
6. TASS: West not showing readiness for talks with Russia on security guarantees — senior diplomat – tass.com/politics/1377241
7. rt.com: Russia reveals security proposals to West – rt.com/russia/543492-moscow-west-security-guarantees/
8. Moscow Times: Russia Issues Demands to Limit NATO’s Influence in Post-Soviet Space, Eastern Europe.
9. Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry: Press release on Russian draft documents on legal security guarantees from the United States and NATO – mid.ru/en/foreign_policy/news/1790809/
10. Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry: TREATY BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION ON SECURITY GUARANTEES – mid.ru/ru/foreign_policy/rso/nato/1790818/?lang=en
11. Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry: AGREEMENT ON MEASURES TO ENSURE THE SECURITY OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION AND MEMBER STATES OF THE NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION – mid.ru/ru/foreign_policy/rso/nato/1790803/?lang=en&clear_cache=Y
12. rt.com: Russia prepared to talk with NATO in ‘neutral country’ – rt.com/russia/543410-moscow-nato-discuss-risks/
13. New York Times: Russia Lays Out Demands for a Sweeping New Security Deal With NATO. The proposal, coming as Russia masses troops on the border with Ukraine, was directed at the United States and Ukraine’s other Western allies.
14. The National Interest: Newly Declassified Documents: Gorbachev Told NATO Wouldn’t Move Past East German Border. So what happenned?
15. Meduza: The risks of Constitutional Putinism. The pursuit of political stability is leading Russia to a more centralized and brittle form of government.
16. Kremlin.ru: Meeting of the Council for Strategic Development and National Projects – en.kremlin.ru/events/president/transcripts/67366
17. The Economist editorial: From Moscow with menaces. How to deter Vladimir Putin from invading Ukraine. The West, and Ukrainians, should raise the cost of Russian aggression.
18. Responsible Statecraft: Anatol Lieven, Time to mind the ‘credibility’ trap. The accursed word has now entered the debate on Ukraine, threatening to push the US onto the conveyor belt of a conflict we won’t win.
19. Asia Times: How a SWIFT ban would and wouldn’t hurt Russia. US-EU block of Russia’s access to fund transfer system would certainly sting but could force wider adoption of Moscow’s alternative SPFS.
20. The Economist: SWIFT thinking. The hidden costs of cutting Russia off from SWIFT. America’s foes would rush to alternatives, hastening its financial decline.
21. RFE/RL: German Regulator Says Nord Stream 2 Pipeline Approval Months Away.
22. Russian International Affairs Council: Andrey Kortunov, 8 Years Have Passed, Western Leaders’ Lack of Vision Continues from Sochi to Beijing – russiancouncil.ru/en/analytics-and-comments/analytics/8-years-have-passed-western-leaders-lack-of-vision-continues-from-sochi-to-beijing/
23. TASS: Donbass residents see themselves as part of Russia, says expert – tass.com/politics/1377173
24. Intellinews: Clare Nuttall, DEATH OF THE SOVIET UNION: Strong institutions are better than a strongman leader.
25. Moscow Times: Moscow Times Columnist Wins Prestigious Language Award. (Michele Berdy)