Debate Primer: Defending Ukraine
First some background information on the escalating situation on the border between Ukraine and Russia. We recommend this coverage from the Economist - you can click on each of the explainers to see how the situation has been developing, or just read the most recent one for the current status. [~500 words per story]
Moscow’s Compellence Strategy by Rob Lee [~4,300 words]
Putin's Challenge to Western Hegemony - The 2022 Edition by Adam Tooze [4,706 words]
These two comprehensive pieces written by academics provide a great overview of what Russia is currently doing. The first piece focuses on Russia’s military buildup while the latter piece discusses the current situation more generally.
The US Must Prepare for War Against Russia Over Ukraine by Evelyn N. Farkas [~1,500 words]
This article written by a former Obama foreign policy aide argues that the US must gather together a “coalition of the willing” to use military forces against Russia, if necessary, to protect the current international order.
How the United States Should Respond if Russia Invades Ukraine by Max Bergmann [Variable length]
This detailed report, which was written for the prominent center-left think tank Center for American Progress, provides an extensive list of policy tools that the US could potentially use if Russia invades Ukraine—though it stops short of calling for direct American military intervention. While the whole piece comprises about 10,000 words, it is split up into various sections such as economic tools, military tools, and diplomatic tools, so one can skip around and read only the parts they are most interested in.
Leaked Drafts of NATO, US Responses to Russia Are Surprisingly Revealing by Anatol Lieven [1,400 words]
This work written for the realist think tank known as the Quincy Institute praises the Biden administration for its more conciliatory approach to the current situation compared to the more antagonistic response of the NATO secretariat.
"Ukrainian army" by U.S. Army Europe is licensed under CC PDM 1.0
