Product Description

With a preface by Norman Davies, author of Europe: A History. Revised and updated following Russia's attack on Georgia. No longer the sick man of Europe, Russia is run by an authoritarian ex-KGB regime with the cash to put its ideas into practice. Under Vladimir Putin's autocratic rule, it silences its critics and bullies its neighbours. The murders of Anna Politkovskaya and Aleksander Litvinenko have sent a grim warning to other critics and the sham presidential 'election' in 2007 that put Dmitry Medvedev in the Kremlin as Putin's hand-picked successor showed how Russia's rulers, not the voters, dictate the country's political future. The New Cold War explains the Kremlin's use of energy blockades and trade sanctions, military sabre-rattling and propaganda wars against its neighbours - and why a divided and demoralised West is responding so feebly. It is an incisive and disturbing account of why we are perilously close to defeat - and how we can still win.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #49041 in Books
• Published on: 2009-02-02
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 384 pages

Review
'Highly informed, crisply written and alarming Wise up and stick together is the concluding message in Lucas's outstanding book' Michael Burleigh, Evening Standard 'An impressive polemic arguing that the West still underestimates the danger that Putin's Russia poses A useful appeal for vigilance' Sunday Times 'Perceptive and accurate the KGB regime is attempting to restore the Soviet Empire' Vladimir Bukovsky, former Soviet dissident 'If you need a convincing argument for a joined-up EU foreign policy, look no further' Angus Macqueen, Guardian

Review
`Highly informed, crisply written and alarming ...Outstanding'

The Sunday Telegraph
'The best portrait to date of the mentality of Putin's ruling class ... and the uses to which it is putting its fabulous war chest of oil and gas money.'

Customer Reviews

An interesting book but with a lot of rhetoric and lacking clarity
Although usually I do not bother to buy anymore books having cold war in the title this time knowing the author as a distingue Central and Eastern Europe editor of The Economist I made an exception. The book is certainly worth to read and gives an informative image of the present state and politics of Russia. The author makes a convincing case that Russia moved from a cleptocracy to a agressive autocracy and the West must deal decisievely with a agressive monopoly (Gazprom) run from Kremlin. But you must try hardly to find any relation between the title and the content. The case for a cold war agenda of Kremlin targeting more than our wallets is missing. Some chapters are excellent like the chapter analyzing the economic situation of Russia and the pipeline politics. But a lot of pages are spent on not related issues as Stalin years, Brejnev,Andropov. In many pages rhetoric about the new tsarism, new cold war is used in the detriment of arguments. I miss why we need to start a real cold war for backing with cold war tactics deplorable autocracies as Georgia and Armenia in their messy fight with other autocracy (Russia) about Russian minority living in this countries is missing. Contradictions in argumentation are also present . If Gazprom is a inefficient monopoly as how unable to rise his production as the book rightly argues how can be the pipeline politics and the hidden Kremlin agenda be taken seriously?. Overall a very good book but the reader must do sometimes a lot of effort to separate the excellent parts from rhetoric and sideline information.

The real Russia
I really enjoyed this book. A fascinating insight into the challenges facing Europe and the United States in their relationship with Russia. Provides a lot of detail on Russia today. Well worth reading.

An Important Book
While every reader might not agree with every idea Lucas puts forward in this important book (Mr Berezovsky will certainly have a few words to say, I'm sure!), I think most would agree that it is an extremely interesting and on the whole accurate explanation of Russia's present relationship with the West.
Lucas has lived through much of what he writes about in this account and his first hand knowledge imbues this work with both detail and common sense. He has spent most of his journalistic career examining Russia and is therefore particularly well-placed to write such a useful book.
Although the ideas are dense and in some places extremely complex, Lucas writes with clarity and deftness.
A thoroughly interesting book.