U.S. President Barack Obama took his second oath of office
on Jan. 20. The following Sunday, also in Washington, Metropolitan
Tikhon was enthroned as the primate of the Orthodox Church
in America.
A second major phenomenon largely overlooked by the media
is that 1 million Orthodox Americans affirm the importance
of upholding their faith in that multicultural "melting
pot" even though most speak English and were not raised
according to traditional Russian customs. Although many American
Orthodox believers are not Russians or Europeans, and some
are not even direct descendents of Russian and European immigrants,
they often had an even stronger personal connection to the
Russian emigres and anti-Bolsheviks of the 18th and 19th centuries
and responded more passionately when the Russian Orthodox
Church was driven partly underground.
Against the backdrop of these two factors, we should take
another look at the deeper significance of U.S. relations
with Europe and Russia and not at the shifting winds of
political trends that often determine the outlook of provincial-minded
Russian officials.
First, we should be aware that the U.S. does have many shortcomings.
Even though many U.S. citizens have European roots and might
naturally be expected to feel close ties to their forebears
across the Atlantic, Americans most decidedly do not consider
themselves Europeans. They refuse to let go of their right
to carry arms even assault weapons. They have a peculiar
and very formal justice system. Many states have the death
penalty.
Traditionally, Americans (like Russians to some extent) do
not like to compromise. They are not so much imperialists
as they are deeply provincial: They hold an overly high opinion
of their own rules and principles. At times, they seem to
think that the whole world is an extension of the U.S., so
they are genuinely surprised when somebody does not want to
live according to their standards. This often leads to serious
and dangerous misunderstandings. At the same time, they are
wealthy and truly effective in many spheres of activity. That
is why it is difficult to befriend the U.S. while maintaining
independence and the right to say "no."
But, then, who said it should be easy? Is it easy to get along
with Russia heir to the Soviet empire and often unhappy
not only with itself but with its neighbors as well?
In fact, Russia and the U.S. are linked by special historical,
cultural and political ties and are united by many common
interests. Emigres from old Russia were probably among the
top five largest groups that helped settle and are still influencing
the United States today.
The Russian Empire had an excellent relationship with the
U.S. Washington never took a confrontational stance toward
the Russian Empire and even acted as a counterbalance to several
European states. Russia supported America's freedom-loving
spirit, which it combined with conservatism and its ability
to incorporate and improve upon fresh and dynamic ideas. It
is impossible to imagine the U.S. without its Russian immigrants.
In the 18th and 19th centuries they were present at Fort Ross
and Alaska. There was German the Monk and St. Innocent of
Alaska (later Metropolitan of Moscow and all Russia). And
after 1917, the U.S. was enriched by Russians seeking a safe
haven from persecution. Sergei Rachmaninoff composed his outstanding
music there, Igor Sikorsky created the helicopter, Vladimir
Zworykin invented the television, and Wassily Leontief formulated
his unique economic theory. More recently, Russian emigres
such as ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov and Google co-founder
Sergey Brin have made major contributions in their respective
fields.
The U.S. twice helped Russia in wartime. As a result of the
October Revolution, Russia withdrew from its alliance with
the U.S. and suffered severe consequences. Although U.S. involvement
in World War II was by itself not enough to topple Nazi Germany,
without that help, the Soviet Union would have paid a far
higher price for victory a fact that should be firmly acknowledged.
The U.S. gave shelter to many persecuted people from Russia,
but also committed an unforgivably horrible act by repatriating
many Russians, dooming them to suffer or die in Stalin's labor
camps. Over the past 20 years, the Russian economy has been
largely built with the aid of U.S. technology and know-how,
a lack of access to which would have had disastrous consequences
for this country.
Russia must halt its shameful anti-Americanism and stop earning
Herostratus-like fame (as well as money, most likely held
in dollars) through trivial and dangerous provocations and
conspiracy theories. If the U.S. can be faulted for anything,
it is only that Washington sometimes pays too little attention
to Russia. But then, is the U.S. responsible for solving Russia's
problems?
Of all the powers in today's world, the U.S. best answers
Russia's need for a strong ally capable of making and fulfilling
treaty obligations, more than China, India, Pakistan or Saudi
Arabia. The mutual understanding built up between Russia and
the U.S. is a far more significant factor in world politics
than the surrogate peripheral structures that Moscow is member
to now. Those might serve well enough for propaganda purposes,
but the Moscow leadership understands perfectly well how limited
in scope and duration such alliances can be.
Russia should firmly defend its interests but only when
they actually exist. It should not artificially invent them
at every step in order to "stick it to Washington"
and "teach those Yankees a lesson," only punishing
itself in the end. Russia should not swagger and goad others.
Such behavior does not befit the leaders of a major power,
at least not if they want their children to see Russia's heyday
in their lifetime.
Hopefully, the U.S., with all its diversity, will not forget
its roots and will ensure a significant place in this century's
history by winning not only recognition of its might, but
genuine esteem for its character.
Grigory Yavlinsky is a founder of the Yabloko party. This
comment appeared in Vedomosti.
See also:
Publication
in the Moscow Times
Publication
in Vedomosti
Russia-US
Relations
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