Off the Boil: Why the American Election Aroused Little Excitement in ‘Eastern Europe’

Seen from the Soviet empire and what followed it, America mattered more than any other country. For the Soviet leadership, America was the ‘chief adversary’. For the peoples they held captive, America was the best hope of liberation. After the Iron Curtain fell, America retained pride of place: it was America that could get the Russian troops out, America that would expand NATO, America that had the most important voice in the IMF and the World Bank.

Seen from the Soviet empire and what followed it, America mattered more than any other country. For the Soviet leadership, America was the ‘chief adversary’. For the peoples they held captive, America was the best hope of liberation. After the Iron Curtain fell, America retained pride of place: it was America that could get the Russian troops out, America that would expand NATO, America that had the most important voice in the IMF and the World Bank.