The Cable

Do Russians really want war?

With reports that Ukraine is surrounded by some 140,000 Russian troops, the possibility of a major military conflict in Europe is closer than ever since the end of World War II. There’s been no lack of speculation about whether President Vladimir Putin intends to invade Ukraine again and why. But is what he wants the same as what most Russians want? The answer is complicated, with serious implications for the Western response. Denis Volkov, director of the Levada Center, the country’s only independent polling agency, joins The Cable from Moscow to explain.

Is time running out for American democracy?

With vital voting rights legislation stalled in the Senate and Republican politicians continuing to cast doubt on President Biden’s election, the United States is heading into pivotal midterm elections later this year. Liz Hempowicz and Bruce Stokes join The Cable to discuss the danger America’s democratic institutions face and what must be done to protect them. Liz Hempowicz: Director of Public Policy, Project on Government Oversight Bruce Stokes: Visiting GMF Senior Fellow; Executive Director, Transatlantic Task Force: Together or Alone? Choices and Strategies for Transatlantic Relations for 2021 and Beyond

There's a new democracy playbook. Will anyone use it?

President Joe Biden is set to host the first-ever Summit for Democracy, part of his promise to reassert democratic values around the world. But with Russia and China panning the very idea of values-based diplomacy, can the event’s more than 110 participants prove them wrong? Norman Eisen and Alina Polyakova are co-authors of a new democracy playbook released December 6, together with The Cable’s co-host Jonathan Katz. They talk to Gregory Feifer about their action plan and what chances they believe the summit has to succeed.

Lithuania is punching above its weight. Will it matter at Biden’s Summit for Democracy?

Lithuania shares a border with two hostile autocratic neighbors, Belarus and Russia. If that weren’t enough, the small Baltic democracy is taking on China, too. It’s a role model for confident, democratic leadership in the 21st century, and wants to play an important role at the Summit for Democracy in early December. But will the United States and other powerful democracies come together with tangible support even as authoritarians and populists seem to be on the rise? Lithuanian Vice-Minister Mantas Adomėnas and US Assistant Deputy Secretary of State Kara McDonald joined The Cable to discuss the challenges and hopes for the summit. Transcript here: https://www.icwa.org/the-cable-podcast-lithuania-democracy/

We have the Pandora Papers…Now what?

The Pandora Papers leak exposed some of the shadowy offshore finances the world’s wealthiest and most powerful people use to hide vast fortunes. But it only scratched the surface of an entrenched global financial system rife with loopholes. So what must be done to combat the illicit practices helping drive massive inequities and shake liberal democracies around the globe? Karen Greenaway, who investigated financial crimes at the FBI, and Drew Sullivan, founder of the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), join The Cable to explain.