Power Trip
A Voter’s Guide to Russian Shenanigans
Despite a lagging military and weak economy, they remain a modern superpower thanks to information warfare.
Russia lost the Cold War and now finds itself in a difficult position. The United States sits atop the global power structure, with China closing the gap. The United States’ annual military budget in 2017 was $610 billion, higher than the next seven countries combined. And many of those are U.S. allies. China’s is $228 billion and growing. Russia’s military budget in 2017 was $66.3 billion—less than Saudi Arabia’s. Its economy is a twelfth the size of the United States.
With the world’s largest nuclear arsenal and the ability to project military power in its region, Russia remains a player. But it’s a second-rate power, and long-term trends are pointing down. And they know it.
Despite these disadvantages, Russia has managed to be a major player in the 21st century. Under Vladimir Putin, the country has punched above its weight, sowing havoc within its opponents. Unable to cultivate enough military or economic might to compete with the United States, Russia has settled on a strategy of disruption. It’s declining in many ways, but no one can beat it in one key arena: information. In that way, Russia has…
