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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlpFbfSE0q4&list=TLPQMjkwODIwMjaEYriQpXapXw&index=2 Conversations on Groong - August 28, 2026 In this episode of Conversations on Groong, we speak with Ambassador Jack Matlock, the last US Ambassador to the Soviet Union, about whether the West missed a historic opportunity to integrate Russia into Western security architecture after the Cold War. We discuss the internal collapse of the Soviet Union, Reagan-Gorbachev diplomacy, NATO expansion and Russian backlash, and how Cold War-era decisions shape Armenia's geopolitical choices today, including Matlock's firsthand observations of Soviet Armenia during glasnost and the Nagorno Karabakh movement. Topics: Recollections from Soviet South Caucasus Why the Soviet Union collapsed How the Cold War ended Reagan and Gorbachev's diplomacy America's post-Cold War triumphalism NATO expansion and Russian backlash Great-power rivalry in the Caucasus Armenia's geopolitical choices today Guest: Jack F. Matlock Jr. Timestamps: 1:31 Intro to show with Ambassador Jack F. Matlock 1:44 Recollections from visits to Soviet Armenia (ca. 1988) 7:07 Recollections from when the statue of Stalin came down ca. 1962 9:42 Why did Russia ultimately turn against preserving the Soviet Union? 17:15 Was the dissolution of the USSR inevitable given Gorbachev's reforms? 20:44 On the deplorable state of diplomacy since the end of the Cold War 25:43 Was there an alternative to NATO's expansion east? 40:37 Has Moscow's influence in the South Caucasus waned in the past decade? 46:49 How instrumental was the breakdown of the relations between West and Russia for the situation around Armenia? 54:40 On the state of diplomacy and the education of western diplomats 58:14 How can Armenia avoid Ukrainification? 1:01:26 About Ambassador Jack Matlock 1:02:23 SUPPORT GROONG - podcasts.groong.org/donate Hosts: Hovik Manucharyan Asbed Bedrossian Episode 580 | Recorded: Aug 27, 2026 SHOW NOTES: https://podcasts.groong.org/580 #JackMatlock #ColdWar #SovietUnion #Reagan #Gorbachev #NATO #Russia #SouthCaucasus #Armenia Special thanks to Pietro Shakarian for connecting us with Ambassador Matlock.