Hybrid CoE Working Paper 17: How to read Russia: Internal structural disunity, risk-taking, and Russia’s restless soul

Three basic factors can be seen as guiding Russian policy choices both internally and externally: internal structural disunity, risk-taking, and Russia’s restless soul. These factors are connected to Russian hybrid threat activities, and they show that Russia is a rational actor, but its rationality is not as understandable from the Western perspective. In this Hybrid CoE Working Paper, these factors are analyzed, taking into consideration that they will inform future scenarios as well as explain Russian actions.