A just and durable peace that brings an end to this brutal war would certainly be welcome. However, the details described by Witkoff to date leave considerable doubt about the prospects of his plan.
President Donald Trump has expressed interest in “denuclearization.” However, negotiation of a follow-on agreement would have to deal with difficult issues of substance.
Steven Pifer joins Michael McFaul on World Class to discuss how America's relationship with Ukraine and Europe is shifting, and what that means for the future of international security.
Michael McFaul and Steven Pifer share analysis of where international security seems to be headed, and what it might mean for the U.S., Ukraine, and their partners.
Administration officials have made basic negotiating errors when rolling out their approach that, left uncorrected, will doom their bid to end the war.
As Russia continues to wage its brutal war against Ukraine, calls have increased for Washington, including Donald Trump when he assumes the presidency in January, to force a halt to the fighting in order to save Ukrainian lives.
December 5 marks the 30th anniversary of the Budapest Memorandum of Security Assurances for Ukraine, a key part of the settlement under which Ukraine gave up what was then the world’s third largest nuclear arsenal. Unfortunately, Russia has grossly violated the commitments that it made in the document.
The Russian government has released its new doctrine, which indeed suggests a lower nuclear threshold. However, the Kremlin continues to have reasons not to escalate too far, especially not to the nuclear level, and especially not now.
Russia’s doctrine for the use of nuclear weapons has gone through several evolutions over the past 15 years. Changes in 2010 and 2020 seemed relatively benign. In September 2024, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced additional modifications, which appear more meaningful.
As part of Stanford's 2024 Democracy Day, Michael McFaul and Steven Pifer spoke to students about the war in Ukraine and what the future might bring should Russia be allowed to prevail in its illegal aggression.
While some believe the incursion could be a turning point, that will depend on what additional forces Ukraine’s already-stretched army can commit to the Kursk operation
A growing number of NATO allies support Ukraine’s membership as important for Europe’s security and are ready to extend Kyiv an invitation to join. Other allies, however, are reluctant to take that step now, particularly while Ukraine remains at war with Russia.
The probability that Putin would challenge a NATO member militarily is not high, but his history of miscalculations and overinflated ambition should remind the alliance not to underestimate the risks.
