AU Experts Comment: Twenty-Five Years After the Fall of the Soviet Union and What It Means to Trump’s America Today

Newswise — WHO: American University experts WHAT: Experts from American University are available to comment on a broad range of issues related to the role of Russia in the world, the impact the election of Donald Trump will have on U.S.-Russia relations, and the challenges for both countries that lie ahead. WHEN: Wednesday, Dec. 12, 2016 - ongoing WHERE: In–studio, phone, on campus, via Skype, Facetime or email Background: Mikhail Gorbachev declared the dissolution of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on Dec. 25, 1991. A quarter-century ago, could anyone have foreseen the current state of U.S.-Russia relations? Should Russia be a U.S. ally, and is there anything that a President Trump can do to revive a relationship that was viewed in the early 1990s as a “partnership”?

As the 25th anniversary nears, American University experts are available to provide their insights into how the collapse of the USSR affected U.S. foreign policy and created the balance of powers that prevails in the world today. EXPERTS AVAILABLE: Keith Darden, associate professor in the School of International Service. His research focuses on nationalism, state-building, and the politics of Russia, Ukraine and Eurasia. His book, Economic Liberalism and Its Rivals, explored the formation of international economic institutions among the post-Soviet states.

James Goldgeier, dean of the School of International Service, served on the staff of the National Security Council and at the State Department during the Clinton administration. Prof. Goldgeier is the author of a Council on Foreign Relations Special Report on The Future of NATO and Power and Purpose: U.S. Policy toward Russia after the Cold War. His areas of expertise include U.S. national security policy, U.S.-Europe-Russia relations, and NATO.

Prof. Goldgeier says: “25 years after the Soviet collapse, a new military standoff in Eastern Europe, renewed rivalry in the Middle East, and a full-blown propaganda war are leading to talk of a new Cold War between the United States and Russia. Despite Donald Trump’s calls for an improvement in relations, the deep differences between the two countries will be hard to overcome, and any thaw is likely to be short-lived.”

Eric Lohr, Chair of the History Department at American University and the author of Russian Citizenship: From Empire to Soviet Union, and Nationalizing the Russian Empire: The Campaign Against Enemy Aliens during World War I.

Sarah Snyder, associate professor in the School of International Service and a historian of U.S. foreign relations, specializes in the history of the Cold War, human rights activism, and U.S. human rights policy. Her book, Human Rights Activism and the End of the Cold War: A Transnational History of the Helsinki Network, analyzed the development of a transnational network devoted to human rights advocacy and its contributions to the end of the Cold War.

American University is a leader in global education, enrolling a diverse student body from throughout the United States and nearly 140 countries. Located in Washington, D.C., the university provides opportunities for academic excellence, public service, and internships in the nation’s capital and around the world.-AU-