The collection includes: DVDs of the series as broadcast on BBC2, Jan-Feb 2012: Part 1, Taking control; Part 2, Democracy threatens; Part 3, War; Part 4, New start; transcripts of interviews conducted (chiefly in 2011) with interviewees from France, Georgia, Germany, Israel, Poland, Russia, UK, Ukraine and USA; DVDs of original interviews; final scripts; background information gathered in the course of research. Topics covered include: Russian-American diplomatic relations, 2001-2011; the personal relationship between President Vladimir Putin and President George W Bush, 2001-2009; Russian involvement in Ukrainian politics, 2004; the Orange Revolution, Ukraine, 2004-2005; the Russo-Georgian War (South Ossetia War, Five Day War), Aug 2008; the personal relationship between President Barak Obama and President Dmitry Medvedev, 2009-2011; the relationship between President Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, 2008-2011.
Interview transcripts are arranged by the country where the interview was conducted:
France: Maurice Gourdault-Montagne, French Ambassador to the UK, 2007-2011; Jean-David Levitte, French Ambassador to the United Nations, 2000-2002; French Ambassador to the USA, 2002-2007; diplomatic advisor to President Nicolas Sarkozy, 2007-2012.
Georgia: David Bakradze, Chairman, Parliament of Georgia, 2008-;
Giga Bokeria, Member of Georgian Parliament, 2004-; Deputy Foreign Minister, 2008-2010; Secretary of the National Security Council, 2010-; Nino Burjanadze, Chairperson of the Parliament of Georgia, 2001-2008; Batu Kutelia, Head of Foreign Intelligence, 2006-2008; Georgian Ambassador to the USA, Canada and Mexico, 2008-2011; Deputy National Security Advisor, 2011-; Mikheil Saakashvili, Minister for Justice, 2000-2001; President of Georgia, 2004-2007 and 2008-; Ekaterine Tkeshelashvili, Deputy Prime Minister, 2010-.
Germany: Gerhard Schröder, Chancellor of Germany, 1998-2005; Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Vice Chancellor of Germany, 2007-2009.
Israel: Leonid Nevzlin, executive, Yukos Oil Company, Russia, 1996-2003; senator for Mordovia, Federation Council of Russia, 2001-2003; resident in Israel, 2003-.
Poland: Aleksander Kwasniewski, President of Poland, 1995-2005; Radoslaw Sikorski, Minister of National Defence, 2005-2007; Minister of Foreign Affairs, 2007-.
Russia: Lyudmila Alexeyeva, Chair of human rights non-governmental organisation Moscow Helsinki Group, 1996-; member of human rights advisory commission to President Vladimir Putin, 2000; Anatoly Antonov, Director of Security and Disarmament, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2004-2011; Deputy Minister of Defence, 2011-; Boris Chochiev, acting Prime Minister of South Ossetia, 2008; Arkady Dvorkovich, Assistant to the President of the Russian Federation, 2008-2012; Deputy Prime Minister, 2012-; German Gref, Minister of Economics and Trade, 2000-2007; President of Sberbank, 2007-; Igor Ivanov, Foreign Minister, 1998-2004; Secretary of the Security Council, 2004-2007; Sergei Ivanov, National security advisor, 1999-2001; Minister of Defence, 2001-2007; Deputy Prime Minister, 2005-2011; Chief of Staff, Presidential Administration of Russia, 2011-; Grigory Karasin, Russian Ambassador to the UK, 2000-2005; Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, 2005-; Mikhail Kasyanov, Prime Minister of Russia, 2000-2004; leader, People’s Democratic Union party, 2004-; Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Chairman of Yukos Oil Company, 1997-2003; tried and imprisoned for fraud, 2003; Viktor Khristenko, First Deputy Prime Minister, 1999-2000; Minister of Industry, 2004-2012; Yevgeniy Kiselev (Yevgeny Kiselyov), presenter of weekly news show Itogi, 1993-2001; Eduard Kokoity, President of South Ossetia, 2001-2011; Alexei Kudrin, Minister of Finance, 2000-2011; Maj Gen Marat Kulakhmetov, Commander, Combined Peacekeeping Forces, South Ossetia, 2007-; Sergei Lavrov, Russian Ambassador to the United Nations (UN), 1994-2004; Foreign Minister, 2004-; Sergei Markov, advisor to the Russian Duma, 2000-; member of the ‘Commission to counter attempts to harm Russian interests by falsifying history’, 2009-2012; Vladimir Milov, Deputy Minister of Energy, 2002; Dmitry Muratov, Editor-in-Chief, Novay Gazeta newspaper; Gleb Pavlovsky, political analyst, advisor to the Presidential Administration of Russia, 2000-; Sergei Prikhodko, Deputy Chief of the Presidential Administration, 1998-2004; Aide to the President, 2004-; Sergei Ryabkov, Deputy Chief of Mission, Russian Embassy, USA, 2002-2005; Head of Department of European Co-operation, 2005-2008; Deputy Foreign Minister, 2008-; Viktor Shenderovich, satirist.
UK: Tony Brenton, British Ambassador to Russia, 2004-2008; Alexander Litvinenko, Former Federal Security Service (FSB) officer, resident in UK, 2000-2006; poisoned, 2006 (interviewed c 2000); David Miliband, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, 2007-2010; Jonathan Powell, Downing Street Chief of Staff, 1997-2007; George Robertson, Secretary General, North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), 1999-2004; Alexander Temerko, Vice President, Yukos Oil Company, Russia, 2003-2005; resident in UK, 2005-.
Ukraine: Leonid Kuchma, President of Ukraine, 1994-2005; Hryhoriy Nemyria, Foreign Policy advisor, 2005; Vice Prime Minister for European and International Integration, 2007-2010; Oleh Rybachuk, Deputy Prime Minister for European Integration, 2005; Viktor Yushchenko, President of Ukraine 2005-2010.
USA: Bill Burns, US Ambassador to Russia, 2005-2008; Nick Burns, Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, 2005-2008; Eric Edelman, Principal Deputy Assistant to the Vice President for National Security Affairs, 2001-2003; US Ambassador to Turkey, 2003-2005; Daniel Fata, Policy Director, National Security and Foreign Affairs, Republican Party Committee, 2001-2005; Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, 2005-2008; Daniel Fried, Special Assistant to the President, 2001-2005; Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, 2005-2009; Robert Gates, Secretary of Defense, 2006-2011; Rose Gottemoeller, Director, Carnegie Moscow Center, 2006-2008; Assistant Secretary for Arms Control, Verification and Compliance, 2009-; Stephen Hadley, Deputy National Security Advisor, 2001-2005; National Security Advisor, 2005-2009; John Herbst, US Ambassador to Uzbekistan, 2000-2003; US Ambassador to Ukraine, 2003-2006; Andrei Illarionov, economic advisor to the Russian President, 2000-2005; Senior Researcher, Cato Institute, USA, 2006-; Gen James Jones, National Security Advisor, 2009-2010; Michael McFaul, Senior Director of Russian and Eurasian Affairs, National Security Council, 2008-2011; US Ambassador to Russia, 2011-; Colin Powell, Secretary of State, 2001-2005; Condoleezza Rice, National Security Advisor, 2001-2005; Secretary of State, 2005-2009; Stephen Sestanovich, Secretary of State’s special advisor on New Independent States (NIS) of the former Soviet Union, 1997-2001; Professor of International Diplomacy, Columbia University, 2001-; Damon Wilson, Deputy Director, Private Office of the NATO Secretary General, 2001-2004; Director of Central, Eastern and North European Affairs, National Security Council, 2004-2006; Temuri Yakobashvili, Minister for Reintegration, Georgia, 2008-2010; Georgian Ambassador to the USA, 2010-.