In The News

Senior Russia expert Dr. Dmitry Gorenburg joins WHYY’s Radio Times program to discuss the Russian and Ukrainian military forces and their battle for the Donbas region of Ukraine.

Michael Kofman says, "Compared to the first few weeks of the war, this next offensive is a lot less decisive than it may seem.”

Michael Kofman says, “That while Russia still has more military resources at its disposal than Ukraine does that “no matter what happens in the Donbas, the Russian military will be a spent force.”

Michael Kofman says, “The Moskva, then, was never crucial to Russian President VLADIMIR PUTIN’s war plans, even if it was the Black Sea Fleet’s flagship. The loss is “pretty embarrassing but otherwise not that significant.”

Michael Kofman says, “It will take time to properly reorganize and redeploy so many units given the heavy losses Russia has suffered.”

Samuel Bendett writes, “The last year was a busy one for Russia’s military and civilian artificial intelligence efforts. Moscow poured money into research and development, and Russia’s civil society debated the country’s place in the larger AI ecosystem.”

Dmitry Gorenburg says, "From the Ukrainian point of view, any new capability is better than no new capability,"

Samuel Bendett says, “For years, the Russian infosec industry was preparing for a possible disconnect from international Internet data exchanges. Now, with the unprecedented IT sanctions that are impacting Russia’s high-tech industry, some in Russia think that threat may come to fruition.

Samuel Bendett says, “That Orlan-10 are often used with Russian long-range artillery.”

Dmitry Gorenburg  says, “We all expected that Russia would do several days of airstrikes, precision missile strikes, that kind of thing — ‘softening up,’ so to speak.”

Michael Kofman says: "It's going to be a while before this kit is serviceable, manned, and deployed where it makes a tangible difference.

Michael Kofman says: "So antitank missiles alone are not going to cut it."

Michael Kofman says: “Ukrainian forces concentrated their air defenses in the city, and they used the urban terrain to provide cover.”

Michael Kofman joins PBS NewsHour to assess the Russian military’s shift in focus to eastern Ukraine, marking the “second chapter” of the Russia-Ukraine war.  

Michael Kofman says “By leaving the bulk of forces around Kyiv in place, suggests analyst Michael Kofman, Russia will be able to keep Ukraine’s military stuck in fighting around the city.”

Samuel Bendett says “Once there would be cease fire, I would imagine Russians would bring out their Uran-6 teams to clear the area of mines, unexploded ordinance and to make a show of their kind of modern capability.”

Samuel Bendett, says, "This war is playing out on our smartphones in ways that no other conflicts probably have so far."