Dr Richard Connolly is Director of the Centre for Russian, European and Eurasian Studies (CREES) at the University of Birmingham. He is a specialist on the political economy of Russia and has published widely on Russia's energy and defence industries, Russia's role in the global economy, and on how sanctions affected Russia. His most recent book is Russia's Response to Sanctions, published by Cambridge University Press in 2018. He has advised a wide range of governments and private-sector organisations.