Victoria Nuland on Russia-NATO relations, peace negotiations with Ukraine, and the U.S. elections

Victoria Nuland played a significant role in the U.S. foreign policy, particularly concerning Russia, Ukraine, and the countries of the former Soviet Union. Nuland participated in negotiations between Russia and NATO in the ’90s, as well as in talks between Russia and Ukraine in 2016 and 2022. She recently left the State Department, so now she can share a lot of new insights. Did George H.W. Bush and James Baker really never promise Gorbachev that NATO wouldn’t expand eastward? Why wasn’t Ukraine admitted to NATO in 2008? And is it true that in April 2022, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson discouraged Ukrainians from signing a peace agreement? Additionally, what might happen if Donald Trump becomes the next U.S. president? Victoria Nuland, who is portrayed by Russian propaganda as one of Russia’s main enemies, is actually a big fan of the “great Russian culture.“ She began studying Russian in college, devoured works by Chekhov, Tolstoy, and Dostoevsky, and always believed that the U.S. and Russia could and should cooperate. And in our interview, she shares an incredible story about how, in the 1980s, she worked as a translator on a Soviet fishing vessel, learned to curse in Russian, drink vodka, and fend off drunk Russian men. #Nuland #Zygar #Interview 00:00 — Introduction 00:43 — How Nuland became interested in Russian culture 01:53 — Nuland’s ancestors were immigrants from the Russian Empire 02:41 — First trip to the USSR: Working in a Soviet summer camp and as a nanny for a diplomat’s family 05:58 — Working on a Soviet fishing vessel 10:38 — The collapse of the USSR: Was it anticipated? 11:58 — What the U.S. did wrong in relations with Russia after the USSR’s collapse 15:22 — Should the U.S. have helped Russia more in the ’90s? 17:25 — The ’90s: A time of missed opportunities — what went wrong? 20:05 — Could the U.S. have intervened more in Russia’s internal politics to prevent Putin from coming to power? 22:40 — Is it true that American Republicans always find it easier to negotiate with Russia than Democrats? 28:15 — Why was Russia long denied WTO membership, and was there a chance for Russia to join NATO? 31:49 — Is it true that in the early ’90s, the U.S. promised not to expand NATO eastward? 35:00 — What went wrong in the relations, and when? 39:40 — Did the U.S. interfere in the Orange Revolution in Ukraine? 41:07 — Why weren’t Ukraine and Georgia admitted to NATO? 45:10 — The famous Russian meme “the State Department Cookies“: What really happened and why did this meme become so popular in Russia? 48:38 — Why didn’t the U.S. participate in negotiations between Ukraine and Russia as early as 2015? 50:42 — Nuland and Surkov’s negotiations: Was there a chance for a deal in 2016? 52:56 — Istanbul negotiations in 2022: Did Boris Johnson really discourage Ukrainians from signing a peace deal? 56:41 — The first days of the full-scale war in Ukraine: How the myth of the massive Russian superpower military collapsed 1:00:11 — Should the U.S. do more to help Russians who have fled Russia and oppose the war? 1:06:00 — Who brought down the new “Iron Curtain“ — Russia or the West? 1:08:23 — What will happen If Trump becomes president: Is it possible for the U.S., China, and Russia to divide the world among themselves?