Uploaded February 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
For the US foreign and security establishment and European countries to adopt a new diplomatic and economic strategy towards Moscow, it will be necessary to reconsider the widespread hatred of Russia that developed in Western societies during the war in Ukraine. All wars give rise to attitudes and propaganda of this kind; but it is to be hoped that peace will allow for a calmer and more objective approach that will criticize Russian actions without demonizing the Russian people and culture, or suggesting that Russian crimes are incomparably greater than those of the U.S. and its allies.
Andrei Tsygankov’s new book, Canceling Russia: The Ukraine War and the Rise of the Western Hawks (Palgrave Macmillan, January 7th 2026), is an essential early step in this process. In this work, one of the leading experts on the history of Russian foreign policy and US-Russian relations explores how the foundations for extreme and irrational Russophobia were laid long before the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The author spoke with Anatol Lieven, director of the Eurasia program at the Quincy Institute.
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Quincy Institute is an independent, nonprofit think tank.
Help fund our research: quincyinst.org/donations
Read our reporting: ResponsibleStatecraft.org
Twitter: https://x.com/QuincyInst
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Website: quincyinst.org
For the US foreign and security establishment and European countries to adopt a new diplomatic and economic strategy towards Moscow, it will be necessary to reconsider the widespread hatred of Russia that developed in Western societies during the war in Ukraine. All wars give rise to attitudes and propaganda of this kind; but it is to be hoped that peace will allow for a calmer and more objective approach that will criticize Russian actions without demonizing the Russian people and culture, or suggesting that Russian crimes are incomparably greater than those of the U.S. and its allies.
Andrei Tsygankov’s new book, Canceling Russia: The Ukraine War and the Rise of the Western Hawks (Palgrave Macmillan, January 7th 2026), is an essential early step in this process. In this work, one of the leading experts on the history of Russian foreign policy and US-Russian relations explores how the foundations for extreme and irrational Russophobia were laid long before the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The author spoke with Anatol Lieven, director of the Eurasia program at the Quincy Institute.
###
Quincy Institute is an independent, nonprofit think tank.
Help fund our research: quincyinst.org/donations
Read our reporting: ResponsibleStatecraft.org
Twitter: https://x.com/QuincyInst
TikTok: tiktok.com/quincyinst
Facebook: facebook.com/quincyinst
Instagram: instagram.com//quincyinst
Website: quincyinst.org
