Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Media Tip Sheets
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Media Tip Sheets

Response to Putin’s Speech

Monday, May 9, 2022, By Vanessa Marquette
Share
Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public AffairsRussiaU.S.-Russia RelationsUkraine

As we heard earlier today, Russian President Vladimir Putin said he had no choice but to invade Ukraine in his Victory Day speech (CNN).

Syracuse University’s Mark Jacobson has responded to this speech (see below). Jacobson is the assistant dean of Washington programs in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs. Over the past two decades, he held multiple roles at the Department of Defense including as a Senior Advisor to the Secretary of Defense and to the Secretary of the Navy as well serving as the first Deputy NATO Senior Civilian Representative – Afghanistan. He has also worked on the staff of the Senate Armed Services Committee and as a Senior Transatlantic Fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States. Jacobson also spent 26 years as a military reservist with time as an Army psychological operations specialist and a Navy human intelligence officer.

Jacobson, a military historian by training, focuses on the history of psychological and political warfare and maintains a healthy interest in current issues of disinformation. He is co-curator of Active-Measures newsletter, a weekly digest of articles on propaganda and disinformation.

In response to the speech, Jacobson writes:

“While Putin did not go as far as some thought he might and formally declare war on Ukraine, he nevertheless used the annual Victory Day parade in Red Square to paint the Russian invasion of Ukraine within the context of the ‘Great Patriotic War,’ the Russian name for the Second World War. Evoking the Russian defense against the Nazi invasion in 1941, Putin described the invasion / ‘special military operation’ in similar terms – justifying it as a necessity to defend the Motherland. In particular Putin blamed NATO and went so far as to state that the West was planning to invade Russia.

While not addressing scope of the Russian military failures to date, Putin did acknowledge that Russian troops had been killed – stating that Russia would ‘do everything to take care of the families’ that had lost soldiers in Ukraine. While in some ways blasting the NATO alliance and the West was standard fare for a Victory Day speech, it indicates, unfortunately, that Putin has no intentions of ending the operation or sitting down for genuine peace negotiations. Indeed he doubled down on territorial claims noting that Russian forces would ‘liberate’ eastern Ukraine.

This is going to be a long war and the Biden Administration – while responding deftly to date – has a difficult line to walk in terms of avoiding a direct confrontation with the Russians, especially when the Russians will seek, to some degree, to provoke exactly that type of response.”

Members of the media who would like to interview Jacobson on this issue may contact:

Vanessa Marquette
University Communications
315.271.6417  |  vrmarque@syr.edu

  • Author

Vanessa Marquette

  • Recent
  • Graduate Students Bring Physics to Local Classrooms With Outreach Program
    Friday, May 27, 2022, By Dan Bernardi
  • COVID-19 Update: Effective Wednesday, June 1, Masking Level Returns to Yellow
    Friday, May 27, 2022, By News Staff
  • Preparing Students for a Life of Success
    Friday, May 27, 2022, By Caroline K. Reff
  • Alumni Draw on Their Military Experience in Their Roles as Teachers
    Thursday, May 26, 2022, By Martin Walls
  • Bringing ‘CSI’ Into the Classroom
    Thursday, May 26, 2022, By Dan Bernardi

More In Media Tip Sheets

Vice Admiral responds to Biden’s trip to Asia

If you are looking for an expert in military and intelligence issues, please see comments from retired Vice Admiral Robert Murrett regarding President Biden’s trip to Asia and the mention of the “United States would intervene militarily if China attempts to…

Media Tip Sheet: Consequences of China Lockdown

As the intense lockdowns continue in China, one of our Syracuse University professors weighed in on possible consequences they may have on the economy. Dimitar Gueorguiev is an associate professor of political science at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and…

Architecture Expert and Researcher of Abortion Clinics On the Future of Access

Last week, a draft decision for Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization was leaked from the Supreme Court and shows that five justices are preparing a judgment that would strike down Roe v. Wade. For reporters covering this ongoing story,…

“Inclusion Should Not Be an Afterthought”: Education and Legal Experts Weigh In on Plan to Update Federal Regulations

For the first time in 45 years, the U.S. Education Department is planning to update federal mandates for how schools and colleges must accommodate students with disabilities. The department is soliciting public comments about how current regulations can be improved…

Leaks at the Supreme Court, what really matters? The leak or the decision?

This week, Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts ordered an investigation on how a draft decision of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization was leaked to Politico. This leak shows that five justices are preparing a judgment that would strike down…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • Facebook
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • Youtube
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • @SUCampus
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2022 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.