Aspiration Quote by Harrison Salisbury

The great drama of Russian history has been between its state and society. Put simply, Russia has always had too much state and not…

— Fareed Zakaria

Nothing has changed in Russia since Ivan the Terrible when it comes to the divide between the people and the state. The state demands…

— Vladimir Sorokin

“About Russia: Ironically, in the country where common people’s dislike and fear of their state takes place, we can hear much more talks about…

— Leo Pevsner

“There are at the present time two great nations in the world, which started from different points, but seem to tend towards the same…

— Alexis de Tocqueville

“The most basic, most rudimentary spiritual need of the Russian people is the need for suffering, ever-present and unquenchable, everywhere and in everything.”

— Fyodor Dostoyevsky

“Russia used to be great, a nation of philosophers, brilliant thinkers, artists, and scientists. Not anymore. It hasn’t been great for a long time,…

— Penny Reid

As awful as the crimes of Stalinism were, the vast majority of the Russian population was trying to survive, to love, to have a…

— Amor Towles

We need to develop respect for our history, despite all of its flaws, and love for the Fatherland. We need to pay the utmost…

— Vladimir Putin

Russia is tough. The history, the land, the people - brutal.

— Henry Rollins

Because in Russia you were able to triumph with the help of a large class of poor peasants, you represent things in such a…

— Herman Gorter

Scholars of totalitarianism talk about the importance of this constant movement, this forever war, this need to do battle on behalf of something that…

— Masha Gessen

“Entire civilizations in history had ceased to exist. How had life in them felt in the last decades and days? Russia and the Russians…

— Masha Gessen