The lands in between: the new politics of Russia's hybrid war
In: Oxford scholarship online
Russia's hybrid war on the West has begun to afflict Western politics in ways that are remarkably similar to its effects on the "lands in between," small, vulnerable countries in Europe situated in between Russia and the European Union. While many in the West are only beginning to understand how hybrid war affects politics at home, Russia's meddling in the 2016 US presidential elections and subsequent elections in Europe brought to the fore problems that front-line states had been dealing with for years. Their experiences hold important lessons. This text, written by a US expert on Europe with wide experience in the UK, France, Czechia, Poland, and Russia, shows how this conflict has deepened political polarization in the lands in between, forcing countries to face a 'civilizational choice' between Russia and the European Union.