The program is the first initiative between India and Russia that will focus on science and technology based entrepreneurship. [...] will not only lay foundations for increased bilateral trade across the nations, but also further goals of key national initiatives like Start-Up India, Make-in-India and Digital India.

Contemplating Russian nuclear threats during the Cold War, the strategist Herman Kahn calibrated a macabre ladder of escalation, with 44 rungs ranging from “Ostensible Crisis” to “Spasm or Insensate War.” In the era of cyberwarfare that’s now dawning, the rules of the game haven’t yet been established with such coldblooded precision. That’s why this period of Russian-American relations is so tricky. The strategic framework that could provide stability hasn’t been set.

Tensions are again mounting between Russia and Ukraine. Dubiously claiming provocation, Russia has stationed 40,000 troops on the Ukrainian border. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned of a full-scale invasion.[...] What do Russians think of their government’s aggressive foreign policy? Is there anything our government could do to influence the Russian public’s perspective?

In Russia, opinion polls are as important as, or possibly more so than, in democracies. [...] These opinion polls, in turn, reflect the information bubble created by the Russian government. For example, a survey conducted by the Russian Public Opinion Centerin 2014 found 80 percent of Russians supported Russia going to war to ensure that Crimea became part of Russia instead of Ukraine."

Thirty-three years ago this week, Soviet fighter jets shot down a Korean Airlines passenger jet that had strayed into Soviet airspace while on a scheduled flight from New York to Seoul. Two hundred and sixty-nine passengers and crew were killed, including a U.S. Congressman. At first, Moscow denied that this had happened, then it claimed that the commercial flight had been gathering intelligence. No apologies were ever made.