70. Oksana Huss & Joseph Pozsgai-Alvarez on the war in Ukraine

We are joined by Oksana Huss, postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Bologna, and Joseph Pozsgai-Alvarez, Associate Professor and specialist in anti-corruption studies at Osaka University, where we discuss the unfolding events in Ukraine through the lenses of corruption. We continue to think about the Ukrainian people, their suffering and the tragic loss of life during these recent events. (01:00) - Introduction (03:15) - Huss’ background of anti-corruption in Ukraine. Ukraine’s revolutions, decentralization reform (and challenges), and president Zelensky’s democratic election (11:30) - The cultural and economic threat that the developments in Ukraine posed on Russian elites. National identity, agency, and political influence of Ukrainian and Russian people. The primacy of economics in the values of the West (21:30) - The threat to national liberties. A new wave of authoritarianism exporting corruption to liberal democracies, and how this is broader than strategic corruption (32:05) - Forms of strategic corruption and the financial influence of Russia on Europe (37:20) - Ex-German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and strategic corruption (42:59) - Optimism and the resilience of the Ukrainian army. How sanction efforts on Russia can be learnings for Japan in regards to China (53:58) - The effect of sanctions on Russian elites. Nuclear threats on Europe. Corruption as a network beyond national borders (1:01:44) - Separating the Russian elite and the Russian oligarchs. How to hit dirty money that enables the general Russian society to enter into more positive diplomatic ties with the West