Thane Gustafson, "Perfect Storm: Russia's Failed Economic Opening, the Hurricane of War and Sanctions, and the Uncertain Future" (Oxford UP, 2025)

Aug 29, 2025

Thane Gustafson, a Professor of Government at Georgetown University and author of "Perfect Storm," dives into Russia's turbulent economic journey post-Soviet Union. He discusses the fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the consequent Western sanctions. Examining the rise of Vladimir Putin, Gustafson reflects on changing West-Russia dynamics amid cultural exchanges. He also explores innovative Russian adaptations to sanctions and speculates on future relations, emphasizing the need for new leadership to reshape an uncertain landscape.

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INSIGHT

Opening Transformed But Ultimately Unraveled

Russia's post‑Soviet opening created deep economic and social change but ultimately failed to produce stable integration with the West.
The opening built markets, internet access, migration, and Western business presence that later unraveled.

ANECDOTE

McDonald's As Symbol Of Reopening

The first McDonald's in Moscow drew lines around the block and taught waitstaff to smile, symbolizing cultural change.
McDonald's built local supply chains and converted ruble receipts into dollars via real estate deals to operate in Russia.

INSIGHT

Energy Ties Were Deep And Fragile

Western energy companies pursued major Russian projects but later exited when the Kremlin renationalized assets.
BP and others deeply integrated into Russia but eventually lost assets to state firms like Rosneft.

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Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 brought a tragic close to a thirty-year period of history that began with the collapse of the Soviet Union and the reopening of Russia to the West after six decades of Soviet isolation. The opening lasted for three tumultuous decades and ended with a new closing, driven by the Ukrainian war, the imposition of Western sanctions, and the Russian responses to them.

In Perfect Storm: Russia's Failed Economic Opening, the Hurricane of War and Sanctions, and the Uncertain Future (Oxford University Press, 2025), Russia analyst Thane Gustafson reinterprets the story of Russia's failed opening to the West, focusing on its economic, technological, and social aspects, and the role they played in its ultimate failure. These parallel events are essential for understanding what happened and what went wrong. Yet they have received much less attention than the military and geopolitical aspects of the current conflict. Gustafson tells the story of the West's entry into Russia, the arrival of Russians into the West, and the conflicting emotions and responses these aroused on both sides, contributing to the ultimate breakdown of relations and the unprecedented hurricane of Western sanctions. The book concludes with an examination of possible futures under a new generation of leaders.

A measured and nuanced account of the evolution of Russia's economic relations with the world, Perfect Storm illuminates the longer history of Russia's opening to the West, from its achievements and disappointments to the complexity of the post-invasion sanctions regime and Russia's responses to them.

Thane Gustafson is Professor of Government at Georgetown University. He is the author of many books, including Klimat (2021), The Bridge (2020), and Wheel of Fortune (2012).

Caleb Zakarin is editor of the New Books Network.

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