Garčević Offers Insights on Russian Political Elites

Amb. Vesko Garčević

On August 28, 2023 Amb. Vesko Garčević, Professor of the Practice of International Relations at Boston University’s Pardee School of Global Studies, was featured in Al Jazeera Balkan’s political talk show Context, along with former Croatian Ambassador to Russia, Božo Kovačević, and former Serbian Ambassador to Belarus, Srećko Djukić.

On the show, the discussants picked apart the personal and political agendas of the Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inner circle, and how their divergent interests drove internal political dynamics in the Kremlin.

Garčević argued that, deep beneath the public currents, internal factions were clashing over becoming Putin’s next heir, which he commented was unsurprising, given the nature of the Russian political system. He elaborated by explaining that the “all against all” power struggle had been taking place for years, but intensified with the invasion of Ukraine and subsequent complications, quoting prominent investigative journalist Roman Anin.

You can watch the full episode here.

Ambassador Vesko Garčević dealt with issues pertinent to European security and NATO for almost 14 years during his diplomatic career. In 2004, he was posted in Vienna to serve as Ambassador to Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. He was Montenegro’s Ambassador to NATO from 2010 until 2014 and served as Montenegro’s National Coordinator for NATO from 2015 until he joined the faculty at the Pardee School. Learn more about Ambassador Garčević on his faculty profile.