Is Russian state media prepping its audience for a showdown with Europe? Recent broadcasts have framed European drone factories as legitimate military targets and accused Kyiv of deliberately dragging the continent into conflict with Moscow. Beneath the rhetoric, a quietly advancing Duma law (reportedly drafted inside Putin's own family) would give the Kremlin sweeping new authority to deploy its military abroad. Meanwhile, coverage of Donald Trump has turned sharply hostile, with Moscow mocking the U.S. war effort as a "holy war" led by "crusaders" in the White House. And as Vesti Nedeli continues its glowing coverage of Sino-Russian ties, do these stories signal that the Kremlin is abandoning any pretense of diplomacy with the West?

In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday unpack how Vladimir Putin and Russian elites understand the world, and how they seek to influence it.

Have feedback? Email us at RussiaDecoded@cftni.org.

On Sunday, Péter Magyar’s Tisza party secured a historic victory in Hungary's parliamentary election, ousting current prime minister Viktor Orbán and depriving the Kremlin of its most reliable tool for blocking European assistance to Ukraine. While muted on the election results, Russian state media has continued to hammer at Europe, deriding NATO members as "junk bond" allies and highlighting the Royal Navy’s recent failure to confront a Russian incursion into British territorial waters. This hardline narrative even extends across the Atlantic. The collapse of the Islamabad peace talks has triggered sharp Russian criticism of president Donald Trump’s "madman" negotiation tactics and his megalomaniacal threat to destroy Iranian civilization.

In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday unpack how Vladimir Putin and Russian elites understand the world, and how they seek to influence it.

Have feedback? Email us at RussiaDecoded@cftni.org.

In a televised display reminiscent of the infamous Trump-Zelensky Oval Office meeting in February 2025, Vladimir Putin last week delivered a dressing-down to Armenian prime minister Nikol Pashinyan in the Kremlin. The Russian president warned Armenia that any further pivot toward the European Union and away from Russia would meet severe economic consequences. This public spectacle comes in the lead-up to Hungary's high-stakes parliamentary elections on April 12, where Moscow and Washington both appear eager to bolster incumbent prime minister Viktor Orbán and his anti-EU agenda. As Donald Trump now criticizes European allies for their refusal to participate in his war on Iran, Russian state media speculates whether the Middle East conflict will spell the end of the nearly eight decade NATO alliance.

In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday unpack how Vladimir Putin and Russian elites understand the world, and how they seek to influence it.

Have feedback? Email us at RussiaDecoded@cftni.org.

With U.S. military operations now in their fifth week, the Iran War has become the centerpiece of Russian news coverage, which portrays the operation as a "catastrophe" exposing the limits of American power. The Kremlin’s narrative has even turned personal, mocking the Trump administration’s lack of sophistication. This saturation of Gulf coverage has naturally pushed Russia's own "Special Military Operation" to the fringes of the news cycle, with state media conveniently ignoring rising drone attacks within Russian borders and renewed calls for trilateral peace negotiations from Volodymyr Zelensky.

In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday unpack how Vladimir Putin and Russian elites understand the world, and how they seek to influence it.

Have feedback? Email us at RussiaDecoded@cftni.org.

With the war in Iran now in its fourth week, Russian state media continues to showcase the conflict as the latest act of Western "lawlessness." The heavy focus on the Middle East now serves as a convenient screen for the "special military operation" in Ukraine, which has largely vanished from headline news as Russian forces face retreat and the sudden loss of Starlink connectivity. Behind this silence, the Kremlin is intensifying its "ideological warfare," moving to dismantle digital bridges to the West by targeting the public's reliance on Telegram and rapidly restricting broader internet access to create a 1980s-style information vacuum.

In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday unpack how Vladimir Putin and Russian elites understand the world, and how they seek to influence it.

Have feedback? Email us at RussiaDecoded@cftni.org.

The Kremlin has used the unfolding war in Iran to frame the United States as a reckless "wild elephant" sowing global chaos. Highlighting the destruction of U.S. bases and the "crusading" religious fervor of U.S. military leaders, Russian state media openly contrasts Donald Trump's "Middle Eastern catastrophe" with Vladimir Putin’s "special military operation" in Ukraine; whereas the American effort is depicted as an idiotic and aimless video game, Russia’s campaign is portrayed as a measured, well-planned, and unalloyed success. With potential windfall oil profits now added as a bonus thanks to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, these television broadcasts paint Russia as an island of stability in an increasingly turbulent world.

In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday unpack how Vladimir Putin and Russian elites understand the world, and how they seek to influence it.

Have feedback? Email us at RussiaDecoded@cftni.org.

As U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran enter their second week, the Kremlin faces a complex calculus of costs and benefits. On one hand, the conflict has triggered a surge in global oil prices and effectively diverted critical Western weapon systems away from the Ukrainian front, offering Vladimir Putin clear advantages. Conversely, the war threatens to further isolate Russia by driving the Gulf states firmly into the U.S. camp. While Russian state media intensifies its rhetoric regarding American treachery and "regime adjustment," the ongoing conflict exposes the limits of the Kremlin's regional influence.

In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday unpack how Vladimir Putin and Russian elites understand the world, and how they seek to influence it.

Have feedback? Email us at RussiaDecoded@cftni.org.

As the U.S.-Israeli airstrikes on Iran commenced this weekend, Russian state media took a surprisingly muted tone, avoiding condemnation of President Donald Trump despite characterizing the strikes as a "treacherous attack" on an erstwhile ally. Vladimir Putin, seemingly taken by surprise, has conspicuously withheld any formal opposition, signaling that Moscow remains on the fence while prioritizing its high-stakes talks with Washington over the future of Ukraine. With Putin's "special military operation" marking its four-year anniversary last week, the timing of Trump's "operation" in Iran highlights (for Russian media) uncomfortable parallels between the two conflicts.

In this episode, Andy Kuchins and Chris Monday unpack how Vladimir Putin and Russian elites understand the world, and how they seek to influence it.