Russia Decoded

Center for the National Interest
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Russia Decoded explains how the Kremlin shapes its narrative of current domestic and international events through tightly curated state news broadcasts. Co-hosts Andy Kuchins, a senior fellow at CFTNI and adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins SAIS in Washington, and Chris Monday, a professor of economics at Dongseo University in Busan, South Korea, are veteran observers of Soviet and Russian media. Kuchins and Monday frame their discussions around the weekly Russian news round-up program Vesti Nedeli (“News of the Week”), broadcast on Russia’s Channel 2 on Sunday evenings. Viewed through the right lens, Vesti Nedeli offers a uniquely revealing perspective on how Vladimir Putin and Russian elites understand the world, and how they seek to influence it.

Выпуски

  1. -12 Ч

    February 8, 2026: Assassination in Moscow

    Last week's targeted shooting of General Vladimir Alexeyev in the outskirts of Moscow has stripped the Russian military of one of its most competent strategists. The assassination attempt occurred against the backdrop of growing paranoia reminiscent of the Stalin era, exemplified in a grim new state documentary warning how Ukraine recruits Russian youths as "terrorists" via the popular Telegram messaging app. Meanwhile, to preempt dissatisfaction among national minorities who bear the brunt of war casualties, state media has revived another Stalinist trope of the "friendship of the peoples." In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday unpack how Russian television projects regime stability by doubling down on a narrative combining theatrical patriotism with a hunt for domestic enemies.

    45 мин.

  2. 3 ФЕВР.

    February 1, 2026: Holy War in Ukraine

    Despite suffering over 1.2 million casualties in Ukraine—eclipsing Soviet losses in the Afghan conflict by orders of magnitude—Russian society remains strikingly silent compared to the civil strife that once challenged the Kremlin's authority in the 1980s. This domestic compliance rests, in part, on Russian state media's framing of the Ukraine War as an existential battle for the nation's survival against a decadent West. From the systemic branding of political dissent as treasonous to the pageantry of Putin's recent Middle East diplomacy, hosts Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday look at the latest Vesti Nedeli news broadcast and unpack how state media effectively insulates Russia's urban middle class from the grim realities of a grinding war of attrition.

    39 мин.

  3. 27 ЯНВ.

    January 25, 2026: Putin's Art of the Deal

    After weeks of silence, Russian state media has suddenly pivoted toward a "let's make a deal" narrative, signaling a startling shift in tone as high-stakes Ukraine negotiations revive in Moscow and Abu Dhabi. Vladimir Putin has returned to the airwaves not as an aggressor, but as a calm and savvy dealmaker, even floating a proposal to use frozen central bank assets to fund Donald Trump's new "Board of Peace" and support Ukrainian reconstruction. In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday unpack how Russian state media is recalibrating its narrative and preparing domestic audiences for a potential peace deal over Ukraine.

    43 мин.

  4. 20 ЯНВ.

    January 18, 2026: Europe Between a Rock and a Hard Place

    President Donald Trump’s announcement of punitive tariffs targeting European allies who oppose the U.S. acquisition of Greenland has plunged NATO into a state of unprecedented chaos. In Moscow, Russian state media openly relishes the spectacle, portraying Western leaders as feckless and hopelessly paralyzed in the face of President Trump's pressure campaign. In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday unpack how Vladimir Putin and Russian elites understand the world, and how they seek to influence it.

    47 мин.

  5. 13 ЯНВ.

    January 11, 2026: Might Makes Right?

    Russia's recent Oreshnik missile strike on the Ukrainian city of Lviv, not far from the Polish border, is a new benchmark in the Kremlin’s campaign of intimidation against the West. As the Kremlin gauges the unpredictability of the second Trump administration in Venezuela and Greenland and tests the limits of European deterrence, its state media has abandoned any pretense of diplomacy for the language of raw power. In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday unpack how Vladimir Putin and Russian elites understand the world, and how they seek to influence it.

    45 мин.

  6. 7 ЯНВ.

    January 4, 2026: Moscow's Muted Response on Venezuela

    While the world reacted with shock to the dramatic U.S. seizure of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro on January 3, the Kremlin's response remains strikingly circumspect, fueling speculation of a high-stakes backstage deal and a "new Yalta" establishing spheres of influence from Caracas to Kyiv. In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday discuss the strategic calculus behind Russian media's handling of the Venezuela story and the potentially fabricated drone assassination attempt on Vladimir Putin at his Valdai residence.

    44 мин.

  7. 30.12.2025

    December 28, 2025: The Kremlin's Year in Review

    As 2025 draws to a close, Vesti Nedeli delivers a confident verdict on Vladimir Putin's leadership: the Russian president remains unbowed by Western pressure. State media portrays Europeans as exhausted "piglets" dependent on U.S. sponsorship, while Putin himself is calm, patient and resilient in his phone call with Donald Trump on Ukraine. In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday explore what this carefully curated narrative reveals about the Kremlin's image-making, and whether a new national ideology is taking shape.

    51 мин.

  8. 16.12.2025

    December 14, 2025: Beware What You Wish For

    Russian state television depicts a Europe unraveling under the weight of its own security fantasies, and the specter of escalation—dirty bombs included—is discussed. In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday explore what this message reveals about Moscow’s confidence and its anxieties.

    44 мин.

  9. 09.12.2025

    December 7, 2025: Putin Visits India

    Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in India last week to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's warm embrace, and Russian state media seized the moment to showcase Moscow’s “indispensable” global partnerships. At the same time, Vesti Nedeli continues to push a darker narrative about its war against Kyiv, portraying Ukrainians as collapsing on the battlefield and morally unraveling at home. In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday trace how these contrasting storylines work together to reinforce their portrayal of Russia rising from a fractured, post-Western order.

    38 мин.

  10. 02.12.2025

    November 30, 2025: Putin Plays for Time on the Trump Peace Plan

    Russian President Vladimir Putin continues to project total confidence, signaling that only he will decide the fate of the “Trump peace plan.” Meanwhile, Russian media remains intent on showcasing Ukraine’s corruption scandals, from Andriy Yermak’s downfall to Timur Mindich’s midnight escape to Israel. And what does the sudden resurrection of Mikhail Khodorkovsky as an “enemy within” reveal about Moscow’s anxieties as oligarchs circle around the emerging peace talks? In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday dissect how Russian state media blends swagger, paranoia, and menace to shape the public mood. They explore what this week’s narratives say about the Kremlin's strategy, and how far it's prepared to go to keep control of the battlefield and the bargaining table.

    48 мин.

  11. 26.11.2025

    November 23, 2025: Russia Reacts to Trump’s Peace Plan

    Vesti Nedeli, Russia's Channel 2 news program, opens the week by declaring “Kupyansk is ours” and discussing what it pointedly calls the “Trump peace plan” for Ukraine. Why is Moscow suddenly emphasizing flexibility while keeping its distance from a proposal that could force Russia to part with billions of Euros in frozen assets in Europe? And what does the news program's glowing portrayal of Donald Trump (complete with an AI soccer clip) tell us about how the Kremlin views shifting political winds in Washington? In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday break down what Russian state media wants its audience to believe, and what the Kremlin may actually be preparing for.

    44 мин.
  • Выпусков: 11

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Russia Decoded explains how the Kremlin shapes its narrative of current domestic and international events through tightly curated state news broadcasts. Co-hosts Andy Kuchins, a senior fellow at CFTNI and adjunct professor at Johns Hopkins SAIS in Washington, and Chris Monday, a professor of economics at Dongseo University in Busan, South Korea, are veteran observers of Soviet and Russian media. Kuchins and Monday frame their discussions around the weekly Russian news round-up program Vesti Nedeli (“News of the Week”), broadcast on Russia’s Channel 2 on Sunday evenings. Viewed through the right lens, Vesti Nedeli offers a uniquely revealing perspective on how Vladimir Putin and Russian elites understand the world, and how they seek to influence it.

Информация

  • Автор
    Center for the National Interest
  • Годы выхода
    2025 - 2026
  • Выпуски
    11
  • Ограничения
    Без ненормативной лексики
  • Авторские права
    © Center for the National Interest 2026
  • Сайт подкаста
    Russia Decoded

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