Of Ukraine, Then and Now – Russian Roulette Episode #41

In this episode of Russian Roulette, Olya and Jeff sit down with Steven Pifer. Ambassador Pifer, a non-resident senior fellow at Brookings, is also a former State Department official who, among other things, served as ambassador to Ukraine. He is the author of the recent “The Eagle and the Trident: U.S.-Ukraine Relations in Turbulent Times” (Brookings Institution Press, 2017). We discuss the past two decades of U.S.-Ukraine relations, the state of reforms in Ukraine, strategic stability, the INF treaty, and more.

To learn more about Steven, you can view his bio, here, and purchase his recent book, here.

A few quick clarifiers: At the 6:55 mark, Steve mentioned “Bankova”—Bankova is a reference to the street address for Ukraine’s Presidential administration and is often used to signify the office of the President. Olya then mentions “CTR”—this is the Cooperative Threat Reduction program of U.S. assistance that helped Ukraine eliminate weapons of mass destruction (including nuclear weapons), and related infrastructure, in line with its treaty commitments.

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