An eyewitness account by a U.S. diplomat of Russia's brazen attempt to undo the democratic revolution in UkraineTold from the perspective of a U.S. diplomat in Kiev, this book is the true story of Ukraine's anti-corruption revolution in 2013 14, Russia's intervention and invasion of that nation, and the limited role played by the United States. It puts into a readable narrative the previously unpublished reporting by seasoned U.S. diplomatic and military professionals, a wealth of information on Ukrainian high-level and street-level politics, a broad analysis of the international context, and vivid descriptions of people and places in Ukraine during the EuroMaidan Revolution. The book also counters Russia's disinformation narratives about the revolution and America's role in it. While focusing on a single country during a dramatic three-year period, the book's universal themes among them, truth versus lies, democracy versus autocracy possess a broader urgency for our times. That urgency burns particularly hot for the United States and all other countries that are the targets of Russia's cyber warfare and other forms of political skullduggery. From his posting in U.S. Embassy Kiev (2012-14), the author observed and reported first-hand on the EuroMaidan Revolution that wrested power from a murderous and corrupt pro-Kremlin Ukrainian autocrat Viktor Yanukovych. The book also details Russia's attempt to abort the Ukrainian revolution through threats, economic pressure, lies, and intimidation. When all of that failed, the Kremlin exacted revenge by annexing Ukraine's territory of Crimea and fomenting and sustaining a hybrid war in eastern Ukraine that has killed more than 13,000 people and continues to this day. Ukraine's Revolt, Russia's Revenge is based on the author's own observations and the multitude of reports of his Embassy colleagues who were eyewitnesses to a crucial event in contemporary history.
Christopher M. Smith is currently the Senior Advisor for Strategic Communications at the U.S. State Department Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs' Office of Press and Public Diplomacy. He has served in diplomatic positions in Estonia, Lesotho, China, Ukraine, and Washington, DC.
Contents Preface Acknowledgments Prologue 1. My Road to Kyiv 2. Building Ukraine, from the Hetmans to Maidan 3. Corruption 101: My Introduction to Ukrainian Realities 4. Kyiv's Tug-of-War: Putin Tilts the Balance 5. Blood-Stained Granite 6. Maidan's Poetics versus Steel Shields and Black Helmets 7. Rules of Dictatorship, Fires of Resistance 8. "Who benefits from whipping up hysteriain our quiet little Crimea?" 9. Three Days in Hell: February 18-20, 2014 10. The Kremlin Fog Machine Hits Overdrive 11. Stealing Simferopol 12. Locking Down Crimea, Prying Open the East 13. Shockwaves of Terror in Donbas 14. The Lie Metastasizes Epilogue Index
"Smith offers a timely account to understand the earliest origins of the war. . . . It's likely to become a widely read book as intellectuals and academics look to play catchup on this region of the world." --Democracy Paradox "Christopher Smith's book is a must-read for all those who would like to gain a deeper understanding of Russia's aggression both against Ukraine and Western democracies more broadly, and to recognize the urgency of a unified stand against the hybrid warfare that the Putin regime has unleashed upon those striving for democracy and civil freedoms." --Oleh Kotsyuba, Ukrainian Research Institute, Harvard University
