I am, it transpires, both a serious and expert political scientist and a ranting Russophobe, and all in the same week – at least according to the Russian press.
This past weekend, The Spectator’s blog ran a piece in which I cautiously welcomed French President Emmanuel Macron’s call for Europe to speak directly to Russia. This was picked up by the Russian press with glee. News agency RIA Novosti led the way, but outlets from “national newspaper” Izvestiya to the tabloid Moskovsky Komsomolets followed suit.
A piece about why Europe – including the UK – needed to develop a coherent message and strategy and force its way into the discussions now under way, to avoid leaving Donald Trump as the sole voice of the West, was spun as a recognition that trying to isolate Vladimir Putin had failed, and that Europe needed to try to restore relations it had so pointlessly broken.
Sometimes, of course, there was more dramatic licence at work.
“‘Putin is right’… Europe should stop interfering with the resolution of the Ukrainian conflict and establish dialogue with Russia, according to the expert Mark Galeotti,” declared RIA Novosti, with a rather cavalier take on what was actually a recommendation that Europe find more effective ways of “interfering” on Ukraine’s side.
Still, it was briefly satisfying to see myself described as “noted British political scientist”, given that I was in the first batch of Britons banned indefinitely from the country in June 2022 for my supposed “Russophobia”.
Of course, it couldn’t last. On Sunday, an article of mine on Russian subversion and meddling in Europe was published, and was rather less to Moscow’s liking. Ultra-nationalist news outlet Tsargrad, which one day had approvingly described me as a “British historian and Russian cultural expert“, the next characterised me as “ranting” and relaying “Russophobic rhetoric and outright slander”.
Yet why should the Russian press, even including local sites, care what I think? As someone who reads Russian newspapers every day, I am regularly struck by how heavily they cover what is being said in the Western media.
Often, they simply recount news and opinions, especially when it fits narratives the Kremlin likes to see covered. But at other times, they spin, select, edit and cherrypick in such a way as to subvert the original intent, again to fit the party line.
Either way, not a day goes by without some story on what the Western media is saying, whether positively or to lambast its “Russophobic rhetoric”.
Likewise, UK celebrities get more than their fair share of column inches, whether the latest on the Royal Family or the travails of Dzoan Rouling – Joanne (JK) Rowling. Indeed, the death of “Driving Home for Christmas” singer Chris Rea made it to the front pages, even though he only performed a few times in Moscow, in pre-war times.
How often do British newspapers cover what’s being said in their Russian counterparts, let alone the country’s actors and popstars, unless there is a clear political angle?
In part, this reflects a “know your enemy” fascination, especially as the “special military operation” in Ukraine is portrayed essentially as a European proxy war on Russia. Coming from a system in which the Kremlin frequently dictates the overall messaging, the assumption is that the Western press can likewise be read as coded communication from our governments. Often, the views of some pundit or minor MP will be reported as “Britain says…”
It is more than just that, though. There was a telling line in Putin’s marathon press conference on Friday, in which he offered to work with the UK and with Europe, “on an equal footing, with mutual respect”, adding that “if we were to join forces with European countries, Russia and European countries, our combined GDP at purchasing power parity would be greater than that of the United States”.
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A propaganda line, and a pretty empty one in the current circumstances? Of course. At the same time, it was a reminder that even Putin, like most Russians, thinks of himself as a European. He may feel that “gayropa” has taken a wrong, woke turn, that Russia embodies the true European values, but on some level he still hopes for a reconciliation, albeit on his terms.
Indeed, this is one reason why he and his propagandists are so vitriolic about Europe (including the UK), because this is a dispute within family. As a Russian nationalist politician once told me: “The Americans can love us or hate us, but when the Europeans pretend we’re not Europeans, too, that really makes us angry.”
So the Russian media pays close attention to us, not just for clues about our intent and useful propaganda lines to feed the masses, but also because they are pressing their nose up against the window, wistfully and resentfully watching what the rest of the family is doing.
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