Month: January 2023

Background Briefing: January 31, 2023

Trump Could be Indicted in Atlanta and Manhattan Within Days or Weeks

We begin with an update on the many pending indictments of Donald Trump with the possibility that within days or weeks both the Atlanta DA and the Manhattan DA will issue indictments on election interference and campaign finance violations. Joining us is Scott Horton, a professor at Columbia Law School and is a contributing editor at Harper’s in legal affairs and national security. He serves on the American branch of the International Law Association, and has represented a variety of journalists and whistleblowers.   

The Ukraine War Has Derailed Russian Espionage Activities Leading to an Unprecedented Number of Arrests

 Then following an unprecedented number of arrests of Russian spies and spies working for Russia in the US, the UK, Germany, Italy, Sweden, Norway, Poland and the Netherlands, we look into how the Ukraine war has derailed Russian espionage activities. Joining us is Olga Lautman, is a Non-resident Senior Fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis who is also the creator and co-host of the Kremlin File podcast series, which features expert discussions on the Kremlin’s internal affairs, global operations, and tactics used from their hybrid warfare toolkit to destabilize Western democracies. Olga’s research focuses on the cross-section of organized crime and intelligence operations in Russia and Ukraine, their impact on the West, and the monitoring of active measures campaigns conducted by the Kremlin to destabilize democratic practices and influence foreign elections. We will discuss her articles at Spytalk, “Putin’s Ukraine Folly Enables Kremlin Rivals” and at The Center for European Policy Analysis, “Western Elites — Rubles Bought (Some of) the Best.

The State Department’s Announcement Today that Russia is Not Complying With the New START Treaty

Then finally with the State Department announcing today that Russia is not complying with its obligations under the New START treaty, we examine rising nuclear tensions with Russia and former British PM Boris Johnson’s recent revelation that Putin threatened him with a missile that could arrive in a minute. Joining us isTom Collina, Director of Policy at the Ploughshares Fund where he works as a researcher, analyst, and advocate to end US nuclear testing, rationalize anti-missile programs, extend the Nonproliferation Treaty, and secure Senate ratification of the New START Treaty.  He previously served as Research Director of the Arms Control Association, was the Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Institute for Science and International Security and the Director of the Global Security Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists. He is the co-host of the Press the Button podcast and the co-author with William Perry of The Button: The New Nuclear Arms Race and Presidential Power from Truman to Trump.