S8 Ep157: State Department Strategy and Moscow — Mary Kissel — Kissel explains that State Department strategic objectives prioritize implementing President Trump's directive to remove Maduro from Vene

State Department Strategy and Moscow — Mary Kissel — Kissel explains that State Department strategic objectives prioritize implementing President Trump's directive to remove Maduro from Venezuelan power while ensuring American national security and hemispheric stability. Kissel details that Trump envoys currently in Moscow encounter Putin's two-track negotiating strategy: offering economic incentives for Russian reintegration into global markets while simultaneously demanding substantial Ukrainian territorial concessions and NATO exclusion from Eastern Europe. Kissel emphasizes the strategic complexity of reconciling U.S. interests in Ukrainian sovereignty with Russian security demands regarding sphere of influence and buffer state arrangements. 1961 BERLIN