The Long View explores ideas, long-form arguments, and the space where public debate meets rigorous research. The series examines the former Soviet Union and the global policy questions it raises, bringing scholars and practitioners into conversation. Through interviews and discussions, The Long View connects academic insight with real-world relevance, continuing the Kennan Institute’s tradition of clear, accessible analysis.
#026 | Prisoners in the New Cold War with Drew Hinshaw and Joe Parkinson
What do prisoner exchanges reveal about the changing relationship between Russia and the West?
Michael Kimmage is joined by Wall Street Journal journalists Drew Hinshaw and Joe Parkinson to discuss their book, Swap: A Secret History of the New Cold War, an account of the negotiations that culminated in the landmark 2024 prisoner exchange between Russia and the West.
Hinshaw and Parkinson examine how prisoners have become instruments of geopolitical leverage, the roles of intelligence operatives and intermediaries in negotiating their release, and the political calculations shaping these exchanges.
The conversation explores the practice of detaining and exchanging prisoners in Vladimir Putin’s Russia, the complexities of diplomacy between adversaries, and what these negotiations reveal about U.S.-Russia relations amid the war in Ukraine.
📖 Explore Swap: A Secret History of the New Cold War by Drew Hinshaw and Joe Parkinson:
https://www.amazon.com/Swap-Secret-History-New-Cold/dp/0063458241
Stay connected with the Kennan Institute. Join our mailing list for new analysis, events, and conversations:
https://www.kennaninstitute.org/newsletter
23 Sept 2026
#025 - Russian Public Opinion After the Duma Elections with Timothy Frye and Samuel Greene
How do we know what Russians really think?
Timothy Frye of Columbia University and Samuel Greene of King’s College London join Michael Kimmage and Maria Lipman for The Long View to examine Russian public opinion following the September Duma elections. Frye is the Marshall D. Shulman Professor of Post-Soviet Foreign Policy at Columbia, while Greene is Professor of Russian Politics at King’s College London.
The conversation explores what the elections can tell us about Russian society, attitudes toward the government and the war in Ukraine, and the relationship between public opinion and political power.
Frye and Greene also examine the challenge at the heart of researching contemporary Russia: how can public opinion be measured and interpreted in an authoritarian political environment? They consider the strengths and limitations of polling, elections, and other evidence used to understand what Russians think.
Together, the discussion asks not only what Russian public opinion is, but how confidently researchers can assess it and what those findings can tell us about politics and society in Russia.
Stay connected with the Kennan Institute. Join our mailing list for new analysis, events, and conversations:
https://www.kennaninstitute.org/newsletter
22 Sept 2026
#024 - Putin's Campaign to Defeat the West with Hanna Notte
How does Russia’s confrontation with the West extend beyond Europe and the United States?
Hanna Notte, a Kennan Institute Non-Resident Fellow and author of We Shall Outlast Them: Putin’s Global Campaign to Defeat the West, joins Michael Kimmage and Maria Lipman for The Long View to examine the global dimensions of Russian foreign policy.
Drawing on research and travel across Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, Notte explores how Russia’s war against Ukraine has transformed Moscow’s relationships around the world. She examines Russia’s use of economic statecraft, political narratives, and international partnerships, as well as how countries outside the West respond to Russian overtures according to their own interests.
The conversation considers how the war has reshaped Russia’s global strategy, the limits of Moscow’s influence, and what Russia’s engagement beyond Europe and the United States reveals about a changing international order.
📖 Featured Book: We Shall Outlast Them: Putin’s Global Campaign to Defeat the West
https://wwnorton.com/books/9781324117018
Stay connected with the Kennan Institute. Join our mailing list for new analysis, events, and conversations:
https://www.kennaninstitute.org/newsletter
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