Currents 058: John Robb on Russia-Ukraine Outcomes

Continuing his series of expert interviews on the Russia-Ukraine War, Jim talks again with John Robb, this time about the likelihood of a settlement. They discuss the pressures currently pushing both sides against negotiating, why Russia is opposed to Ukraine joining the EU, the likelihood of an ongoing stalemate, why WWI is a better analogue for this war than WWII, the current balance of forces in Ukraine & absence of data on Ukrainian losses, Russia's failure to take advantage of drones and smart weapons, why Russia has underachieved compared with analyst predictions, the downside of closed societies & nepotism, transition points that could change willingness to settle, Putin's "maximum acceptable atrocity" restraint, the possibility of nuclear escalation, a new network mechanism for collective security, the overblown narrative of Russian disinformation capacity, why Russia hasn't destroyed Ukraine's communications infrastructure, strategic implications of global network warfare, coming rapid improvements in drone tech, and much more.