An international chat show on the politics, history, current events, and peoples of the Slavic world, sponsored by The University of Texas at Austin's Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies and Clements Center for National Security. Whether you're a Slavophile, a foreign affairs junkie, or simply a curious mind, The Slavic Connexion offers insightful, accessible, and even fun discussions on the sprawling region in the context of our hyperconnected world. "It's not typical Texas..."
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On this episode, luminary historian Professor Norman Davies joins us to talk about the state of Polish studies, the deep history of Ukraine when it was ruled from Warsaw and Krakow, and the importance of broadening European and Slavic studies as taught in academic spaces. This episode was all about historical context, so we hope you enjoy. Thanks for listening! ABOUT THE GUEST Norman Davies, born in 1939 in Bolton (Lancashire) was educated at Bolton School, Magdalen College, Oxford, the Universi...
On this first episode of season 5, Lera and Zack talk with Dr. Artyom Tonoyan about the ongoing Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, delving into the history of tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan, Russia's role and presence as mediator, and the various geopolitical vectors in the region. Thanks for listening! From the publisher: "East View Press aims to provide readers with the immediate context of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict through the lens of Moscow, along with some insight into its complex hist...
Recent dual-degree CREEES and LBJ Global Policies Studies MA graduate Lucia Winkeler returns to the podcast to discuss her research and report “Chechen Chernie Vdovi: The Most Lethal Human ‘Black Widows’” in which she examines the motivations and explanations for Chechen women’s involvement in extremist organizations and actions. Content warning: There are discussions of sexual assault and suicide in this episode. Listener discretion is advised. You can listen to Lucia's first episode with us he...
With the end of the 2021-2022 academic year, we are taking a short reprieve before beginning our new season. In the meantime, we have the pleasure of bringing out a wonderful episode from our backlog recorded at the end of 2021 with guest José Vergara who speaks both about his passion for Russian literature and the unique methods he applies in the classroom to help students engage with novels by Dostoevsky, Nabokov, and others. Vergara also talks about his book which came out in October 2021 and...
On this episode, Andreas Umland talks with Lera and Cullan about the Right and the Far Right political movements in Ukraine, addressing the ultranationalist claim propounded by Russian propaganda versus the reality reflected at the election polls in Ukraine since 2014. Dr. Umland convincingly argues that the Far Right narrative, including the alarms raised over the Azov movement as justification for Putin's war, is a "non-story" and largely a "manipulation of consciousness." ABOUT THE GUEST Andr...
On this episode, Lera and Sergio speak with Douglas Selvage at the Humboldt University of Berlin about his research on the disinformation cooperation between KGB and STASI during the Cold War and specifically the work of Operation "Denver" in the 1980s. Dr. Selvage talks of how these same Cold War propaganda tactics are nearly verbatim recycled today in Putin's war of aggression in Ukraine. For his recent article, as mentioned in this episode, visit: https://www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/moscow...
In this special episode, we feature Drs. Mary Neuburger and Oksana Lutsyshyna, and former SlavX hosts Matthew Orr and Lauren Nyquist who together undertook a phenomenal investigative project in spring 2019 to examine and closely follow Ukrainian youth political engagement during the presidential election in which Volodymyr Zelenskyy ultimately beat incumbent Petro Poroshenko. The team discusses the fascinating process by which they began their research, how they connected with Ukrainian students...
Journalist Leonid Ragozin joins us to talk about the irrationality of Putin's invasion of Ukraine and Zelensky's steadfast resistance which has led to the present stalemate situation that we now have. Ragozin states, "History will show whether Zelensky was right in this game of chicken to collide with Putin..." Ragozin calls Putin's gamble a suicidal move ("complete insanity"), not just for Putin's regime but for Russia itself. "I don't see how... they [can] win in the way they want to win." Bol...
Returning guest, Alex Kokcharov, joins us from London to share his personal views and stories on the war in Ukraine. He talks of the stark informational divides that have arisen between Russia and the West, wherein even family on both sides of the Ukraine-Russia border cannot agree on what is happening in this conflict or why. Putin's Propaganda machine "brainwashes" Russian people outside of Moscow and St. Petersburg that even those with family in the midst of shelling in Russian-speaking citie...
With the unconscionable Russian invasion of Ukraine ordered by Russian president Vladimir Putin, we will be focusing the next several episodes on Ukraine. These episodes will aim to provide our global listeners, who are seeking to inform themselves truthfully about the war, with background, context, analyses, and historical appreciation of this country and why the world absolutely must care and must combat Putin's revisionist and disinformationist campaigns. On this episode, the first of our Ukr...
В этом выпуске Лера и Миша берут интервью у известного российского оппозиционного политика, историка, и публициста Владимира Кара-Мурзы. Они обсуждают перспективы российской оппозиции на ближайшие годы, состояние гражданского общества в России, положение оппозиционной прессы в России, преследование про-демократических активистов и постепенную, но плавную смену риторики президента Путина в отношении демократии и сменяемости власти в Российской Федерации. Мы искренне надеемся что вам понравится! Ж...
On this special episode, we had the opportunity to speak with Russian opposition leader Vladimir Kara-Murza during his visit to The University of Texas at Austin. Mr. Kara-Murza provides insight into the Russian dissident movement today, perspective on Mr. Putin and US-Russian relations over the last two decades, and personal reflections on the life and legacy of Boris Nemtsov before and after his assassination on February 27, 2015. We hope you enjoy! ABOUT THE GUEST (Image source: IRI. Kara-Mur...
On this episode, Lera and our new host Misha speak with travel writer and journalist Mark Baker based in Prague. They discuss how he went from writing for the likes of Bloomberg and working for Radio Free Europe to researching and creating travel books for Lonely Planet and others. Mark Baker expounds on his latest book, not a travel guide but a memoir, which covers his amazing stories and experiences in Prague in the decade following the Cold War. We hope you enjoy! ABOUT THE GUEST Mark Baker i...
Sergey Radchenko, a prolific historian with a multifaceted background and perspective, regales us on many topics from Cold War history to the current sitaution with Russia and Ukraine and Moscow's continued pursuit of legitimacy on the global stage. On a personal note, he shares about his time as an exchange student in Hong Kong and expounds on what it was like living in Mongolia while finishing his PhD with the London School of Economics. Dr. Radchenko questions Russia's continual status as the...
On this episode, UT CREEES's new cohort of MA graduate students, under the direction of Dr. Mary Neuburger, presents their findings of a Fall 2021 project in which they analyzed North Macedonia’s mired quest for EU accession, which was blocked for over 25 years by Greece and since 2019 has been held up by a Bulgarian ultimatum. Since both Greece and Bulgaria are EU members, they have veto power over Macedonian accession, which has put the country now called North Macedonia into an untenable posi...
Happy Holidays, y'all! On this episode, Lera gets to sit down and chat with Dr. Juliane Fürst who unpacks 10 years worth of research and personal explorations in the Soviet Hippie movement as published in her latest book from Oxford University Press. Her stories will thrill, so gather 'round and take a listen. We hope you enjoy! ABOUT THE GUEST Juliane Fürst is head of the department of Communism and Society at the Centre of Contemporary History at Potsdam and a Senior Research Fellow at the Uni...
On this, the 30th anniversary of the institution of martial law in Poland (which took place on December 13th, 1981), we talked with Eastern Europe historian Tomek Jankowski to commemorate this momentous point in modern history which roughly coincides with the release of the 2nd edition of his comprehensive and entertaining history of Eastern Europe. Sharing with us his personal experiences and stories from his time in Hungary as a student to his getting caught in the Romanian revolution of 1989,...
Lera and Zach talk with Atlantic Council fellow and prolific American journalist Vladislav Davidzon. Davidzon has extensively covered the Belarussian protests from within Minsk, Ukrainian political and cultural developments since 2014, and Russian elections and Navalny's impact on Moscow politics and policies. His new book From Russia With Love is now available. You can find it here: https://www.amazon.com/Odessa-Love-Political-Literary-Post-Soviet/dp/1680539663 . For a recent review by the Atla...
Mark Temnycky, a Ukrainian-American journalist, breaks down the Nord Stream 2 issue, its timeline, and its relation to the energy situation in Europe. He expounds on the Biden administration's reversal on its position concerning the pipeline, and explains the security concerns that a working Nord Stream 2 that bypasses Belarus and Ukraine creates for America, NATO, and Europe in general. Thanks for listening! ABOUT THE GUEST Mark Temnycky is an accredited freelance journalist covering Eastern Eu...
Dr. Johanna Mellis, a former D1 swimmer and current history professor at Ursinus College, joins Lera for a lively conversation on the history of sports in Hungary during the Cold War. They also touch on the Olympics (past and present), sport diplomacy, and the development of competitive sports on an international plane. For a great visual timeline of Sport in the Cold War and further related resources and collections, visit the Wilson's Center digital archive: https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter...
Author Jordan Steven Sher, a social worker and former teacher based in California, joins Lera and Cullan to talk about his new historical fiction novel which authentically and carefully explores the grossly overlooked Bosnian Genocide of Muslims and Catholic Croats during the Bosnian War of 1992-95, as carried out by Slobodan Milošević. You can find out more about Jordan's book (entitled And Still We Rise: A Novel About the Genocide in Bosnia) through his website www.jordanstevensher.com . ABOUT...
In this episode, Patrice Dabrowski takes us on a historical journey through the highly understudied Carpathian Mountains of Poland, Slovakia, and Ukraine. Her brand new book details the many forces at play in the mountainous region over the years from 1860 to 1980 and shows how this area gradually went from terra incongita to tourist attraction. We hope you enjoy! ABOUT THE BOOK In The Carpathians, Patrice M. Dabrowski narrates how three highland ranges of the mountain system found in present-da...
On this episode, Marko Dumančić joins Lera and Cullan to talk about his recently published monograph entitled Men Out of Focus: The Soviet Masculinity Crisis in the Long Sixties wherein he unpacks the changing conceptions of men in post-Stalinist society by taking a deeper look at Soviet films made at the time. This is a fun conversation, riddled with film talk. We hope you enjoy! ABOUT THE GUEST Marko Dumančić is an associate professor at Western Kentucky University’s History Department. He wor...
In this episode, Dr. Nunan explores the nuances of the Soviet Union’s relationship with Islam throughout its lifetime, both inside and outside of its borders, before diving into the varied strategies of Soviet nation building efforts within Afghanistan as well as this ever important Central Asian country’s experience in the Cold War overall. With Afghanistan spanning news headlines, this episode is an outstanding introduction to the experiences that shaped Afghanistan's modern history. We hope y...
Dr. Siobhán Hearne discusses her book, "Policing Prostitution: Regulating the Lower Classes in Late Imperial Russia," exploring the social history of sex work. She highlights the nuanced experiences of women beyond state policies, the regional diversity of regulation, and how discussions of prostitution fueled anti-Semitic and racist rhetoric. The episode also touches on the continuities and shifts in prostitution regulation from the Imperial to the Soviet periods, revealing the complex societal views on sex workers.
Dr. Robert Hamilton of the U.S. Army War College returns to the show to speak with hosts Lera and Zach about the future of Afghanistan and the fate of the region's security architecture. Currently on leave to serve as advisor to the Georgian Ministry of Defense, Dr. Hamilton discusses the role of the Georgian military in the Afghanistan War and what the U.S. withdrawal (and Taliban rule) means for Georgia's future as well. He poses three questions concerning the regional security architecture: (...
Zoltán Ginelli from Budapest joins Zach and Cullan to talk about his field of critical geography and the framing of colonial history of Central Europe following both World War II and the Cold War. We hope you enjoy this conversation! ABOUT THE GUEST Zoltán Ginelli is an independent researcher and a critical geographer, historian of science and global historian. His research is in the geographies of knowledge, world-systems analysis, and the histories of geography, colonialism and racism, with a ...
On this episode, Professor Dina Fainberg joins Zach and Lera to talk about her latest book, the highly readable "Cold War Correspondents" in which she highlights stories of Soviet and American journalists and draws fascinating parallels to the US-Russia media landscape today. We hope you enjoy! ABOUT THE GUEST Dr. Dina Fainberg is a Lecturer in Modern History and the Director of History BA Programme at City University of London. Her research explores the history of the Soviet Union and modern Ru...
On this special (musical) episode, guest host Sophia Kontos helps us understand Eurovision and break down the politics and ploys behind the song entries themselves, focusing on three major countries: Greece, Turkey, and Ukraine. Eurovision is an annual televised European Song Contest started in 1956 to boost morale and European integration after WWII. When Greece won in 2005, Sophia, whose Dad is Greek, became enamored by Eurovision. She's since followed the competition as a spectator, but in th...
On this episode, Professor David Moon from the UK joins Tom and Lera to talk about the fascinating personal journey which led to the release of his latest book, The American Steppes: Unexpected Russian Roots of Great Plains Agriculture. He clearly delineates how the kernels of his transnational research all began during his tenure at The University of Texas at Austin, demonstrating that in fact "What Starts Here Changes the World." We hope you enjoy! ABOUT THE GUEST David Moon is an Emeritus Pro...
