Originally published on July 8, 2021 (Episode 212)
Introduction
Peter the Great is remembered as the ruler who westernized Russia, defeated Sweden, and built a Baltic capital as Russia’s “window to the West.” Yet on his deathbed, he was thinking of Asia—dreaming of a passage to China and India through the Arctic Sea.
It’s with this vignette that Chris Miller begins his new book We Shall Be Masters: Russia’s Pivots to East Asia from Peter the Great to Putin. Miller demonstrates that Russia has never been consistently interested in Asia, but cyclically so. The Tsars colonized Alaska, California, and even Hawaii—only to abandon them. They envisioned the Amur River as an Asian Mississippi, then lost interest. Most Russian attempts to find security, wealth, and glory in Asia have been half-hearted, ending in failure.
What explains these cycles of fascination and indifference? That is the subject of today’s conversation.
About the Guest
Chris Miller is Assistant Professor of International History at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. His books include Putinomics: Power and Money in Resurgent Russia and The Struggle to Save the Soviet Economy. He was last heard on Historically Thinking in Episode 153, where he discussed the Chinese surveillance state.
For Further Investigation
Chris Miller, We Shall Be Masters: Russia’s Pivots to East Asia from Peter the Great to Putin
Chris Miller, Putinomics: Power and Money in Resurgent Russia
Episode 153: Thinking Historically About the Surveillance State, with Chris Miller
Listen & Discuss
How do you see Russia’s relationship with Asia today in light of this long history of failed pivots? Could the current geopolitical moment be different—or will it follow the same cycles of ambition and retreat?
Share your thoughts in the comments below—and forward this post to a friend who follows Russia and global affairs.
