Containing Russia: How to Respond to Moscow's Intervention in U.S. Democracy and Growing Geopolitical Challenge

“The evidence that Russia interfered in the 2016 U.S. presidential election is overwhelming,” note CFR Senior Fellows Robert D. Blackwill and Philip H. Gordon in a new Council Special Report, Containing Russia: How to Respond to Moscow’s Intervention in U.S. Democracy and Growing Geopolitical Challenge. As the report shows, Russia not only meddled in the U.S. democratic process and sought to exacerbate American social divisions but also seeks to undermine U.S. power in Europe and around the world. Blackwill and Gordon, former senior officials in numerous Republican and Democratic administrations, respectively, argue that “neither President Barack Obama nor President [Donald J.] Trump—for different reasons—adequately elevated Russia’s intervention in the United States to the national priority that it is, or responded to it in a way sufficient to deter Russia or other hostile states from undertaking future attacks.”

In this report, Blackwill and Gordon contend that “Russia’s intervention should not be seen as just another of many stumbles in U.S.-Russia relations over the decades but as a historic turning point” because of the nature of Moscow’s threat to America’s democratic institutions. A more robust and comprehensive strategy to protect the United States, its allies, and its interests against Russian attacks is therefore sorely needed. To that end, the authors put forth a wide range of policy prescriptions to strengthen U.S. defenses and increase the costs of continued Russian interference.  Their prescriptions include expanded sanctions on Russian officials and entities to punish past transgressions and deter future ones; strengthened measures to defend U.S. electoral bodies and cybersecurity and to create greater transparency in social media; and additional U.S. commitments to European security to better protect allies and U.S. interests against Russian aggression.Blackwill and Gordon conclude that “the United States is currently in a second Cold War with Russia” and urge the Trump administration to change its policies to reflect this fact.