American Committee for US-Russia Accord

Evidence that undermines the “election hack” narrative should get more attention.

Though given in November 2014, the University of California’s Provost Emeritus and Professor of Political Science George W. Breslauer’s speech to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences remains very relevant today. Dr. Breslauer noted that while he has “never been a part of the chorus that is quick to blame the United States when something goes wrong internationally…in the case of Russia, I think we brought the current problems upon ourselves.” The video link to his speech is at the link below, and Dr. Breslauer’s written remarks can be found here: https://www.amacad.org/content/publications/pubContent.aspx?d=21687

“Without the Cold War, what’s the point of being an American?”  As the long twilight struggle was finally winding down, Harry “Rabbit” Angstrom, novelist John Updike’s late-twentieth-century Everyman, pondered that question. In short order, Rabbit got his answer.

The U.S.-Russian relationship is in a downward spiral.

Eugene Rumer, a Senior Associate and Director of the Russia and Eurasia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, writes “The P5+1—the U.S., Russia, France, Great Britain, China, all U.N. Security Council permanent members joined by Germany—is a unique forum where the key parties can come together to seek a way to solve the Syrian crisis. In addition to the major powers, the P5+1 format has the advantage of being able to engage Iran, a critical actor in Syria without whom no solution can be found.”

Pointless and recklessly irresponsible new sanctions recently adopted almost unanimously by Congress against Russia are, as Professor Stephen F. Cohen has long argued, evidence that the new Cold War is more dangerous than was its 40-year predecessor.

Former NSA experts say it wasn’t a hack at all, but a leak—an inside job by someone with access to the DNC’s system…

The Russian government has a number of different motives for its intervention in the conflict in Syria. Among these are the desire to help an old ally, to be seen once more as a great power on the world stage, and establish a position that will force US and European leaders to treat Russia’s views with greater respect, especially over the Ukraine crisis.

Russia’s strategy, however, also stems from a particular analysis of the situation in Syria based on a mixture of hard-headed realism and the experience of over two decades since the fall of communism.

America desperately needs new thinking on foreign policy.

Criticism of Russia’s projection of force into Syria is often laced with predictions of an impending Russian quagmire, in the fashion of the Soviet misadventure of the 1970s in Afghanistan. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Mr. Putin has made a strategic, well calibrated and thought out move on the Middle East chessboard and will soon reap significant geopolitical rewards from it.

Arming Ukraine would invite disaster…

While supporters of arming Ukraine want to send a “signal” of commitment to European order by “raising the cost” for Russia (i.e., killing Russians), the effect would be to cause more instability and violence mostly at Ukraine’s expense.

ACEWA Founding Board Member Stephen F. Cohen continues his weekly appearance on the John Batchelor Show. This week Dr. Cohen and John Batchelor discuss the ongoing war in Syria, with a particular emphasis on the proxy war that is playing out between the US and Russia, with Russia flying sorties over Syrian rebel strongholds while the US continues to arm the so-called Syrian “moderate” opposition.

The historical record shows that Washington has meddled in the political affairs of dozens of countries-including many democracies. An egregious example occurred in Ukraine during the Euromaidan Revolution of 2014.

The Russian intervention in Syria has triggered a wave of comments and critiques in the media on both sides of the Atlantic and all along the shores of the Mediterranean and the Gulf. Analysts freely speculate about which groups exactly are Russia’s intended targets, whether this intervention complies with international law, and whether Putin is trying to divert attention from the Ukrainian crisis and thus ease his ostracism from polite society. The most serious question, however, is: can the Russian strikes put an end to the incredible turmoil and violence that Syria has undergone over the last four years?

Former CIA analyst Melvin Goodman says in order for the relationship between the United States and Russia to stabilize, the two countries need to restart the program of de-nuclearization that began more than half a century ago.