Alexei Arbatov considers the possibilities of nuclear war between Russia and the United States. It sounds like Putin’s “strike first” comment made Arbatov wonder if Putin intended that for nuclear war. He decides not, but, I think, not entirely convincingly. This is one of the issues the United States and Russia need to talk about. Read More
This is the most complete account I have seen of the crash of the Russian charter jet in the Sinai. Updates are coming regularly. What is remarkable to me is that Russia is not providing a number of outrageous stories. The chief executive of Metrojet even says it couldn’t possibly have been anything his airline did wrong, just as Western executives often do. ISIS claimed responsibility, but the jet was higher than most ground-based weapons can reach. The animosity toward Russia, due to Russia’s intervention in Syria, is telling, though. Photo from Reuters video. Read More
