Do you think Russians have only America on their minds? True, the U.S. is an ideal enemy for fanning the flames of collective hate and an ideal competitor for geopolitical games. But all the alleged grievances aside, has the U.S. ever played a significant role in Russia’s past or present? Not really—but another state has. Germany, of course, has exerted an enormous influence on Russia down through the centuries, although neither Russians nor Germans like to admit it. Germans have ruled Russia (they even institutionalized favoritism: “Bironovshchina” during the rule of Tzarina Anna [1730–40]); they constituted the most successful part …read more
Source: The American Interest
