New Cold War: How the Kremlin Menaces Both Russia and the West

The first book to explain how the Kremlin's increasingly authoritarian and aggressive stance threatens Europe, America and the world.

With a preface by Norman Davies, author of Europe: A History. Revised and updated following Russia's attack on Georgia. No longer the sick man of Europe, Russia is run by an authoritarian ex-KGB regime with the cash to put its ideas into practice. Under Vladimir Putin's autocratic rule, it silences its critics and bullies its neighbours. The murders of Anna Politkovskaya and Aleksander Litvinenko have sent a grim warning to other critics and the sham presidential 'election' in 2007 that put Dmitry Medvedev in the Kremlin as Putin's hand-picked successor showed how Russia's rulers, not the voters, dictate the country's political future. The New Cold War explains the Kremlin's use of energy blockades and trade sanctions, military sabre-rattling and propaganda wars against its neighbours - and why a divided and demoralised West is responding so feebly. It is an incisive and disturbing account of why we are perilously close to defeat - and how we can still win.

'Highly informed, crisply written and alarming ... Wise up and stick together is the concluding message in Lucas's outstanding book' Michael Burleigh, Evening Standard 'An impressive polemic arguing that the West still underestimates the danger that Putin's Russia poses ... A useful appeal for vigilance' Sunday Times 'Perceptive and accurate ... the KGB regime is attempting to restore the Soviet Empire' Vladimir Bukovsky, former Soviet dissident 'If you need a convincing argument for a joined-up EU foreign policy, look no further' Angus Macqueen, Guardian

Edward Lucas is currently Deputy Editor, International Section, Central and Eastern Europe correspondent for the Economist. He has been covering central and Eastern Europe since 1986. He was based in the Baltic states from 1990 to 1994, covering the collapse of the Soviet Union and, from 1992, as the managing editor of the Baltic Independent, a weekly English-language newspaper published in Tallinn. He holds a BSc from the London School of Economics, and studied Polish at the Jagiellonian University, Cracow. The New Cold War is his first book.

Revised and updated for the paperback edition, The New Cold War now also addresses Russia following the 2008 Presidential Election and invasion of Georgia. New preface from Norman Davies, the bestselling author of Europe: A History Over 7,000 hardbacks have sold through BookScan and an intensive series of sell-out author events Selected for Newsnight's Book Club and discussed on air with Jeremy Paxman and Edward Lucas