Speeches & Testimony

"He turned away from Tom to stare intensely at me with his steely blue eyes and stern scowl to accuse me of purposely seeking to ruin U.S.-Russia relations. Putin seemed genuinely angry with me." FSI Director Michael McFaul speaks about his journey from Montana debater to Stanford University faculty member to Obama administration advisor and finally to U.S. ambassador to Russia and Putin's personal foe. His new book "From Cold War to Hot Peace," tells his story while explaining the last 30 years of U.S.-Russia relations.

Please join The Harriman Institute and New York University’s Jordan Center for the Advanced Study of Russia for a debate between Stephen F. Cohen (Professor Emeritus of Russian Studies at New York University and Professor Emeritus of Politics at Princeton University) and Michael McFaul (Professor, Department of Political Science, Stanford University) on “The New U.S.-Russian Cold War: Who is to Blame?"

During his tenure as U.S. Ambassador to Russia under President Obama, Stanford Political Science Professor Michael McFaul lived with death threats against him and his family. Since returning to the U.S., McFaul has been banned from returning to Russia, but at home he is one of the most sought-after observers of what he calls the Trump-Putin “Bromance.” His take on Russia today is both insightful and troubling. But as he says, “Diplomacy is not a popularity contest.”

U.S.-Russia relations today are more strained and more confrontational than at any time since the end of the Cold War. In fact, even some periods of the Cold War seemed more cooperative than our current era. For the first time since the end of the World War II, a European country has annexed territory of a neighbor. Emboldened by the relative ease of Crimea’s annexation, Vladimir Putin then went a step further and intervened in eastern Ukraine in an attempt to wrestle more territory away from Kiev’s control.

US-Russian relations have reached one of their lowest points since the end of the Cold War. Michael McFaul, former ambassador to Russia and author of such books as Russia's Unfinished Revolution, will shed light on the tenuous relationship between Moscow and Washington. As Russia and the US face off over Ukraine, can they continue to cooperate on Syria and Iran?

In this Uncommon Knowledge, Hoover fellow Peter Robinson speaks with former US ambassador to Russia, Hoover senior fellow, and Stanford political science professor Michael McFaul. McFaul discusses Russian president Vladimir Putin's complex and evolving rhetoric and strategic objectives, emphasizing recent developments in the US-Russia relationship, Putin and former US Russian president Dmitry Medvedev, and Ukraine's strategic importance to Russia.