Introduction: Putin's New Russia: Fragile State or Revisionist Power?

Much of the content in this collection of articles in the South Central Review were presented by scholars and journalists at a September 2015 conference and subsequent talks between 2016–2017 on Putin’s New Russia at the Bush School of Government at Texas A&M University. These articles help to fill a gap in the western understanding of Putin’s Russia by examining the structure of its political and economic systems, the motivation of its ruling elite, the threat it poses to its neighbors, and its profound dysfunctions. The authors answer the question: How does Russia’s external demonstrations of strength relate to growing evidence of its internal weaknesses? To respond to this question, we must review Russia’s foreign and defense policies to understand how they are related to the country’s internal challenges.