71. Episode - Inna Melnykovska on how crony capitalism relates to the war in Ukraine
We welcome Inna Melnykovska from the Political Science Department at Central European University. She is an expert on state business relations and crony capitalism in Eastern Europe. (01:50) - The direction of Inna’s research (06:00) - Political pluralism and the competition of big business in Ukrainian politics (08:50) - Putin and Ukraine’s competitive oligarchy (10:14) - The similarities and nuances between Russia and Ukraine (12:15) - President Zelenskyy’s fight against crony capitalists - the good and the bad (17:35) - Zelenskyy’s ties to oligarchs and the problems with complete de-oligarchization (21:00) - Putin’s motivation to invade Ukraine (26:54) - The relationship between Russia’s economic elite and Putin’s inner circle, and efforts of western sanctions (39:08) - Inna’s advice for western policies on sanctions and Russian businesses and elites (43:05) - Long term effects