During a briefing today at RFE/RL's Washington office, journalist and author Edward Lucas addressed the topic of "Putin's Russia and the Threat to the West" [streaming audio / on-demand audio / transcript]. Lucas, a former Moscow Bureau Chief for The Economist who currently serves as that newspaper's Central and Eastern Europe Correspondent and Deputy Editor of its International Section, is the author of "The New Cold War: Putin's Russia and the Threat to the West" (Palgrave MacMillan). The briefing was moderated by Pulitzer Prize winning author and former "New York Times" foreign correspondent, David K. Shipler.
Lucas offered a sobering assessment of how the political and security structures built during the rise to power of Russian President Vladimir Putin have created a new threat to the West, which he argues must be confronted earlier than later. He discussed many of the issues addressed in the book, including how Russia is pursuing global energy markets; neighboring nations are being coerced back into the former Soviet orbit; journalists and dissidents are being silenced; and foreign investments and private enterprises are routinely defrauded.
The briefing was recorded for later broadcast on C-SPAN's weekend "Book TV" program.
Lucas offered a sobering assessment of how the political and security structures built during the rise to power of Russian President Vladimir Putin have created a new threat to the West, which he argues must be confronted earlier than later. He discussed many of the issues addressed in the book, including how Russia is pursuing global energy markets; neighboring nations are being coerced back into the former Soviet orbit; journalists and dissidents are being silenced; and foreign investments and private enterprises are routinely defrauded.
The briefing was recorded for later broadcast on C-SPAN's weekend "Book TV" program.