From Cold War to Hot Peace : The Inside Story of Russia and America

Author: McFaul, Michael

Russia

Published on 2 May 2019 by Penguin Books Ltd in the United Kingdom.

'A fascinating and timely account of the current crisis in the relationship between Russia and the United States' Daniel Beer, The New York Times'Could not be more timely ... crucial reading for anyone interested in what's happening inside Putin's head' Oliver Bullough, ProspectA revelatory, behind-the-scenes account of Russian-American relations, from a former US ambassador and 'Obama's top White House advisor on Russia policy' (The New York Times)In

2008, when Michael McFaul was asked to leave his perch at Stanford and

join President-elect Barack Obama's national security team, he had no

idea that he would find himself at the beating heart of one of today's

most contentious international relationships. McFaul had been studying

and visiting Russia for decades, becoming one of America's preeminent

scholars on the country during the first Putin era.

During

President Obama's first term, McFaul helped craft the policy known as

'Reset,' which fostered unprecedented collaboration between the two

countries under Dmitry Medvedev's presidency. Later, as U.S. ambassador

from 2012 to 2014, he witnessed firsthand how Vladimir Putin's new rise interrupted this era of cooperation and returned Russian-American

relations to a level of hostility not known since the darkest days of

the Cold War. From the outset of his ambassadorship, the Kremlin accused McFaul of being sent by Obama to foment revolution against Putin's regime.

This resulting insider's account - uniquely combining history, politics and intimate personal knowledge of the corridors of power - takes us from Putin's dacha to ornate Kremlin chambers and the Oval Office, to explain how Russia really works, and why the world has entered a dangerous new era of confrontation.