Maxwell School News and Commentary

While Russia’s use of the yuan doesn’t mean the end of dollar supremacy, it may usher in the beginning of a more fractured system that could ultimately blunt the U.S.’s ability to use financial sanctions as a weapon, says Daniel McDowell, associate professor of political science.

For Brian Taylor, professor of political science, the biggest take from the one-year anniversary is Ukraine is still standing. "A year ago a lot of people might not have expected that, given Russia’s size, the size of the population, the size of its army, the size of its economy," Taylor says.

Robert Murrett, professor of practice of public administration and international affairs, says that at the strategic level, the biggest setback for Putin is "the huge casualties that the Russians have taken." 

“There are just a lot more things in the atmosphere we have to worry about,” says retired Vice Adm. Robert Murrett, professor of practice of public administration and international affairs.

"My impression is that his power and visibility have increased a lot since the start of the war in Ukraine," says Brian Taylor, professor of political science. "He's a much more public figure than a year ago, and I think that reflects his ambition. And, up to a certain point, the impression it has of its current usefulness."

"The decision of Germany to allow allies to send Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine, as well as Berlin dispatching its own bilateral donation, is a significant symbol of allied commitment to Ukraine, but the implications of this move should not be exaggerated," says Michael Williams, associate professor of public administration and international affairs.

"A bizarre situation with this balloon, in particular, is best understood as an attempt to kind of clarify what the terms of engagement are," says Dimitar Gueorguiev, associate professor of political science. "And what you’ve seen over the past couple of days is that surveillance aircraft at a certain level of altitude are now probably more likely to happen and are more at risk of being shot dow," he says.

DIANA [Defence Innovation Accelerator for the North-Atlantic] could prove key to facilitating interoperability and a more level playing field between the nations—in emerging tech areas and traditional ones that are rapidly evolving, says Michael Williams, associate professor of public administration and international affairs.

As a fellow, Lamis Abdelaaty, associate professor of political science, will work on her proposal, "The Emissary Speaks: Political Agency in Refugee-UNHCR Correspondence."

"Delta Democracy: Pathways to Incremental Civic Revolution in Egypt Beyond" (Oxford University Press, 2020), written by Associate Professor of Public Administration and International Affairs Catherine Herrold, was reviewed in Democratization.