In four, maybe more decades of... studying Russian-American relations, I never really took seriously the possibility of war between the United States… - Stephen F. Cohen

Today I think it’s a very high probability, partly because of this Russiagate nonsense, partly because the lack of American leadership.

We’re not going to be told, just like we’re not being told what’s going on in these private conversations about deposing the president of Ukraine. ...and if the Russians leak them, it doesn’t count. Is that right?

What Putin came to power to do was to modernize Russia, and that does not involve a cold war with the West. Period. End of story. That’s his mission. He wants to go down in history as the man who did this. Cold war, not to mention hot war, is spoiling what he sees as his mission.