Russian interference in the 2016 US elections took most Americans by surprise. But how much of these activities are new and what was the Kremlin seeking to accomplish? This lecture contextualizes the Russian and Soviet active measures in the broader framework of Russian foreign policy while looking ahead at how emerging technologies will transform the future of political warfare.

Alina Polyakova is the David M. Rubenstein Fellow in the Foreign Policy program's Center on the United States and Europe and adjunct professor of European studies at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University. She specializes in European politics, far-right populism and nationalism, and Russian foreign policy. Polyakova's recent book, "The Dark Side of European Integration" (ibidem-Verlag and Columbia University Press, 2015) examines the rise of far-right political parties in Western and Eastern Europe. She has also written extensively on Russian political warfare, Ukraine, and trans-Atlantic relations.

Moderated by Alexis Peri, Assistant Professor of History at Boston University.