Victoria Portnaya
We used to believe that autocratic educational policies stifled free thought. However, as Russia's meritocratic policy supporting talented youth shows, state-created incentives can serve to spread 'dissident' ideas that differ from those presented in national exams. These ideas, writes Victoria Portnaya, may be adopted by a significant portion of schoolchildren preparing for intellectual competitions Read more
Simone Rinaldi
The history of private military activity goes back centuries, but modern-day Private Military Companies are a complex and controversial phenomenon in the global security landscape. Simone Rinaldi and Daniela Irrera argue that their role, and the implications of their use, raise significant challenges for the actors who employ them Read more
Benjamin J. Radford
In the wake of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, Benjamin J. Radford, Yaoyao Dai, Niklas Stoehr, Aaron Schein, Mya Fernandez, and Hanif Sajid have developed a model to better estimate the loss numbers obscured by the fog of war and the biases of somereporting sources Read more
Alexandr Burilkov
The recent mutiny of the Wagner PMC, orchestrated by Yevgeny Prigozhin, was the most serious instance of Russian internal conflict since the beginning of the Ukraine war. Alexandr Burilkov assesses whether its swift resolution reveals a regime that has survived the test unchanged, or whether it has been further weakened Read more
Senem Aydın-Düzgit
As Turkey goes to the polls on Sunday 14 May, Senem Aydın-Düzgit considers the implications for Turkish foreign policy. If the opposition wins, it will focus on rebuilding trust with Western partners. If Erdoğan prevails, he will focus on regime survival Read more
Scott Williamson
When citizens develop grievances, autocrats try to deflect blame to retain popular support. Scott Williamson argues that regime type influences strategies and success rates of autocrats shifting blame when confronted by popular discontent. The more personalist an autocracy, the more damaging blame attribution can be for autocratic survival in office Read more
Elin Bjarnegård
Gender and authoritarianism are interconnected – but in different and unexpected ways. Elin Bjarnegård and Pär Zetterberg think the relationship between them deserves more attention in political science. Here, they expose the relationship in terms of two autocrat strategies: genderwashing and genderbashing Read more
Albrecht Rothacher
Starting with Seymour Hersh’s account of the destruction of the Nord Stream pipeline, Albrecht Rothacher argues that it is important to consider how far American interests are shaping the direction of the war in Ukraine. He cautions that in the long term, it could turn out to be a strategic blunder Read more
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