New Cold War Essay

United States’ Relations with Russia: A New Cold War? Merriam-Webster defines the term Cold War as “a conflict over ideological differences carried on by methods short of sustained overt military action and usually without breaking off diplomatic relations”. Google’s definition is perhaps more illuminating because it adds the dimensions of threats and propaganda to the definition. The political environment today is vastly different than it was during the cold war that extended from 1945 to the early 1990s. Nevertheless, the tensions that exist between the U.S. and Russia today are consistent with modern definitions of a cold war including the presence of threats and propaganda. U.S. foreign policy initiatives over the past ten years have provided Russia with convenient narratives used in its propaganda against the west. These narratives criticize U.S. foreign policy while justifying Russian aggression towards its former

Russia’s recent history includes examples of the use of violence to silence Putin’s critics; Anna Politkovskaya, a prominent Russian reporter, and Alexander Litvinenko, a former Russian intelligence officer were both assassinated while journalist Oleg Kashin was assaulted. These highly publicized attacks send a clear message to those inside Russia who would oppose Putin, while simultaneously eroding the legitimacy of Russia’s government from the international perspective. Russia’s approach to enhancing national security today may not be as pervasive as it was during the time of Stalin when millions are said to have been killed, but these measures are at odds with international norms for governance and have come with a political cost. Deeper study would likely reveal additional parallels between the Soviet era cold war and today’s Russia, yet it’s important to note the presence of many differences as