Michael Anthony McFaul (born October 1, 1963) is an American academic and
diplomat
A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...
who served as the
United States ambassador to Russia
The ambassador of the United States of America to the Russian Federation is the ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary from the United States of America to the Russian Federation. Since January 30, 2023, Lynne M. Tracy is serving as the ...
from 2012 to 2014. McFaul became the Ken Olivier and Angela Nomellini Professor in International Studies in the Department of Political Science at
Stanford University
Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...
in 1995, where he is the Director of the
Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies
Stanford University has many centers and institutes dedicated to the study of various specific topics. These centers and institutes may be within a department, within a school but across departments, an independent laboratory, institute or center ...
. He is also a Peter and Helen Bing Senior Fellow at the
Hoover Institution
The Hoover Institution (officially The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, and Peace and formerly The Hoover Institute and Library on War, Revolution, and Peace) is an American public policy think tank which promotes personal and economic ...
. He is also a contributing columnist at ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
''.
Prior to his nomination to the ambassadorial position, McFaul worked for the
U.S. National Security Council
The United States National Security Council (NSC) is the national security council used by the president of the United States for consideration of national security, military, and foreign policy matters. Based in the White House, it is part ...
as
Special Assistant to the President
Special or specials may refer to:
Policing
* Specials, Ulster Special Constabulary, the Northern Ireland police force
* Specials, Special Constable, an auxiliary, volunteer, or temporary; police worker or police officer
* Special police forces
Mi ...
and senior director of
Russian
Russian(s) may refer to:
*Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*A citizen of Russia
*Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages
*''The Russians'', a b ...
and
Eurasia
Eurasia ( , ) is a continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. According to some geographers, Physical geography, physiographically, Eurasia is a single supercontinent. The concept of Europe and Asia as distinct continents d ...
n affairs,
where he was the architect of
U.S. President
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
's
Russian reset
The Russian reset was an attempt by the Obama administration to improve relations between the United States and Russia in 2009–2013.
Symbolic reset
On March 6, 2009 in Geneva, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton presented Russian Foreign M ...
policy.
Early life and education
Born in
Glasgow, Montana, McFaul was raised in
Butte
In geomorphology, a butte ( ) is an isolated hill with steep, often vertical sides and a small, relatively flat top; buttes are smaller landforms than mesas, plateaus, and table (landform), tablelands. The word ''butte'' comes from the French l ...
and
Bozeman
Bozeman ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Gallatin County, Montana, United States. The 2020 United States census put Bozeman's population at 53,293, making it Montana's fourth-largest city. It is the principal city of the Bozeman, Montan ...
, where his father worked as a musician and music teacher.
While attending
Bozeman High School
Bozeman High School (or BHS) is a State school, public High school#United States, high school for grades 9 through 12 located in Bozeman, Montana. It is the second-oldest high school in the state of Montana.Burlingame, p. 321. In 2024, it had an ...
, McFaul participated in policy debate; his partner was future
U.S. Senator
The United States Senate is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and House have the authority under Article One of the ...
Steve Daines
Steven David Daines ( ; born August 20, 1962) is an American politician and former corporate executive serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Montana, a seat he has held since ...
(R).
While an undergraduate at Stanford University he spent time in the
Soviet Union
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
, first in the summer of 1983 studying
Russian
Russian(s) may refer to:
*Russians (), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries
*A citizen of Russia
*Russian language, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages
*''The Russians'', a b ...
at the Leningrad State University (now
Saint Petersburg State University
Saint Petersburg State University (SPBGU; ) is a public research university in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and one of the oldest and most prestigious universities in Russia. Founded in 1724 by a decree of Peter the Great, the university from the be ...
), and then a semester in 1985 at
Pushkin Institute in
Moscow
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
.
He earned a
B.A.
A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...
in
international relations
International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...
and
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages, also known as the Slavonic languages, are Indo-European languages spoken primarily by the Slavs, Slavic peoples and their descendants. They are thought to descend from a proto-language called Proto-Slavic language, Proto- ...
and an
M.A. in Russian and East European Studies from Stanford in 1986. As a
Rhodes Scholar
The Rhodes Scholarship is an international Postgraduate education, postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford in Oxford, United Kingdom. The scholarship is open to people from all backgrounds around the world.
Esta ...
, he earned a
DPhil
A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...
in international relations from
St John's College, Oxford
St John's College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded as a men's college in 1555, it has been coeducational since 1979.Communication from Michael Riordan, college archivist Its foun ...
, in 1991.
He wrote his dissertation on U.S. and Soviet intervention in revolutionary movements in
southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost region of Africa. No definition is agreed upon, but some groupings include the United Nations geoscheme for Africa, United Nations geoscheme, the intergovernmental Southern African Development Community, and ...
.
McFaul received an
honorary doctorate
An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...
from
Montana State University
Montana State University (MSU) is a public land-grant research university in Bozeman, Montana, United States. It enrolls more students than any other college or university in the state. MSU offers baccalaureate degrees in 60 fields, master's d ...
during the university's fall commencement in 2015.
Career
In 1994, McFaul and one-time close friend and colleague
Sergey Markov
Sergey Leonidovich Markov () ( – June 25, 1918), was an Imperial Russian Army general, and became one of the founders of the Volunteer Army counterrevolutionary force of the White movement in southern Russia during the Russian Civil War which ...
helped found the
Moscow Carnegie Center.
McFaul's past engagement with Russian political figures included a denunciation of him in 1994 by
Vladimir Zhirinovsky
Vladimir Volfovich Zhirinovsky (, , né Eidelstein, ; 25 April 1946 – 6 April 2022) was a Russian right-wing populist politician and the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR) from its creation in 1992 until his death in 20 ...
, leader of the
Liberal Democratic Party
Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party, Democratic Liberal Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties have usually followed liberalism as ideology, although they can vary widely from very progr ...
and a member of the
State Duma
The State Duma is the lower house of the Federal Assembly (Russia), Federal Assembly of Russia, with the upper house being the Federation Council (Russia), Federation Council. It was established by the Constitution of Russia, Constitution of t ...
(the Russian
parliament
In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
),
and a subsequent shooting incident in which a shot was fired into McFaul's office window in Moscow.
Two years later,
Alexander Korzhakov, a confidante of
Russian President
The president of Russia, officially the president of the Russian Federation (), is the executive head of state of Russia. The president is the chair of the Federal State Council and the supreme commander-in-chief of the Russian Armed Forces. I ...
Boris Yeltsin
Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin (1 February 1931 – 23 April 2007) was a Soviet and Russian politician and statesman who served as President of Russia from 1991 to 1999. He was a member of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) from 1961 to ...
, invited McFaul to the
Kremlin
The Moscow Kremlin (also the Kremlin) is a fortified complex in Moscow, Russia. Located in the centre of the country's capital city, the Moscow Kremlin (fortification), Kremlin comprises five palaces, four cathedrals, and the enclosing Mosco ...
during the
1996 Russian presidential election
Presidential elections were held in Russia on 16 June 1996, with a second round being held on 3 July 1996. It resulted in a victory for the incumbent Russian president Boris Yeltsin, who ran as an independent politician. Yeltsin defeated the Co ...
, because of McFaul's research on
electoral politics
An electoral or voting system is a set of rules used to determine the results of an election. Electoral systems are used in politics to elect governments, while non-political elections may take place in business, nonprofit organizations and inf ...
.
Professor of political science
In his capacity as a professor of
political science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...
at
Stanford University
Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...
, McFaul was the director of the university's Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law.
A
Hoover Institution
The Hoover Institution (officially The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, and Peace and formerly The Hoover Institute and Library on War, Revolution, and Peace) is an American public policy think tank which promotes personal and economic ...
Peter and Helen Bing Senior Fellow, McFaul is a
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY)
**Democratic Part ...
who was the architect of
U.S. President
The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
's policy on Russia.
Russia advisor to Obama (2009–2011)
In 2009, McFaul joined the
Barack Obama administration
Barack Obama's tenure as the 44th president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 2009, and ended on January 20, 2017. Obama, a Democrat from Illinois, took office following his victory over Republican nomine ...
as a senior adviser in Washington, D.C., where he was the architect of the so-called "
Russian reset
The Russian reset was an attempt by the Obama administration to improve relations between the United States and Russia in 2009–2013.
Symbolic reset
On March 6, 2009 in Geneva, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton presented Russian Foreign M ...
" policy.
In March 2011, McFaul attended, in his official White House capacity, the meeting between
Joe Biden
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
and
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
, which Biden characterized in his memoir as "argumentative." The two met again in
a 2021 summit.
Ambassador to Russia (2011–2014)
In November 2011, Obama nominated McFaul to be the 7th post-
Soviet
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...
United States Ambassador to the Russian Federation. On December 17, 2011, the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
confirmed McFaul by
unanimous consent
In parliamentary procedure, unanimous consent, also known as general consent, or in the case of the parliaments under the Westminster system, leave of the house (or leave of the senate), is a situation in which no member present objects to a propo ...
. McFaul became the first non-career diplomat to be the U.S. ambassador to Russia.
He arrived in Russia just as huge protests were erupting over
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
's resumption of the presidency. As ambassador he was accused of "fomenting revolution" by the Russian state media, meeting with Russian pro-democracy activists and commenting frequently on
Twitter
Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
in English and Russian.
In his ''Washington Post'' article though he argued that these meetings were in line with Obama's policy.
In a 2012 interview for the news portal ''Slon.ru'', McFaul described himself as "specialist on democracy, anti-dictator movements, revolutions".
On January 17, 2012, soon after McFaul was appointed the new
United States Ambassador to Russia
The ambassador of the United States of America to the Russian Federation is the ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary from the United States of America to the Russian Federation. Since January 30, 2023, Lynne M. Tracy is serving as the ...
and arrived in
Moscow
Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
to assume his post, opposition politicians and civil activists visited the
Embassy of the United States in Moscow
The Embassy of the United States of America in Moscow () is the diplomatic mission of the United States of America in the Russian Federation. The current embassy compound is in the Presnensky District of Moscow, across the street from the Russ ...
. At the entrance to the embassy, they were encountered by pro-Kremlin activists. The visitors to McFaul included
Yevgeniya Chirikova (environment activist),
Boris Nemtsov
Boris Yefimovich Nemtsov; (9 October 195927 February 2015) was a Russian physicist, liberalism in Russia, liberal politician, and outspoken critic of Vladimir Putin. Early in his political career, he was involved in the introduction of reform ...
(leader of the
People's Freedom Party People's Freedom Party may mean one of the following:
* People's Freedom Party (Russia)
* People's Freedom Party "For Russia without Lawlessness and Corruption"
* Constitutional Democratic Party, also called the People's Freedom Party
* Constit ...
at the time; assassinated in 2015),
Lev Ponomarev (human rights activist),
Sergey Mitrokhin (leader of
Yabloko
The Russian United Democratic Party Yabloko (RUDP Yabloko; rus, Росси́йская объединённая демократи́ческая па́ртия «Я́блоко», Rossiyskaya obyedinyonnaya demokraticheskaya partiya "Yabloko" ...
party),
Oksana Dmitriyeva
Oksana Genrikhovna Dmitriyeva (; born 3 April 1958) is a Russian politician and economist, who currently serves as a deputy of the State Duma since 2021, having previously served in the position from 1993 to 2016. A former government minister in ...
(deputy head of
A Just Russia
A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''.
It is similar in shape to the Ancient ...
),
Lilia Shibanova (head of the
GOLOS Association elections monitor group). Leonid Kalashnikov from the
Communist Party of the Russian Federation
The Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF; ) is a communist political party in Russia that officially adheres to Marxist–Leninist philosophy. It is the second-largest political party in Russia after United Russia. The youth o ...
also attended.
Reaction to the visit was mixed: then president
Dmitry Medvedev
Dmitry Anatolyevich Medvedev (born 14 September 1965) is a Russian politician and lawyer who has served as Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of Russia since 2020. Medvedev was also President of Russia between 2008 and 2012 and Prime Mini ...
, in his public comments at Moscow State University, largely exonerated McFaul by saying that meeting with opposition figures was a routine occurrence, although he warned the new U.S. ambassador that he was on Russian soil and should respect Russian political sensibilities.
The incident sparked a highly negative reaction in the state-controlled Russian media, which accused him of conspiring with the opposition, but was appreciated by activists and social media users.
McFaul announced his resignation as ambassador to Russia on February 4, 2014, effective after the
Sochi Olympics
The 2014 Winter Olympics, officially called the XXII Olympic Winter Games () and commonly known as Sochi 2014 (), were an international winter multi-sport event that was held from 7 to 23 February 2014 in Sochi, Russia. Opening ro ...
.
John F. Tefft was confirmed as the next ambassador to Russia.
Return to academia (2014–present)

McFaul returned to Stanford as a professor of political science. He also became a senior fellow at the
Hoover Institution
The Hoover Institution (officially The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, and Peace and formerly The Hoover Institute and Library on War, Revolution, and Peace) is an American public policy think tank which promotes personal and economic ...
. He continued to be involved in geopolitics. In October 2014, he stated that he believed the Russians continued to bug his and his wife's cell phones in the United States. In 2014 he was placed on the Kremlin's sanction list of people who are not allowed to enter Russia.
Russian request for an interrogation
On July 17, 2018, the
Prosecutor General of Russia
The Prosecutor General of Russia (also Attorney General of Russia, ) heads the system of official prosecution in courts and heads the Office of the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation. The Prosecutor General remains one of the most po ...
announced that it was seeking to question McFaul, amongst other Americans, in relation to its investigation of allegations made against
Bill Browder
Sir William Felix Browder, (born 23 April 1964) is an American-born English financier and political activist. He is the CEO and co-founder of Hermitage Capital Management, the investment advisor to the Hermitage Fund, which was formerly the l ...
. This followed a request
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
made to President
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
during the
summit in Helsinki. In a White House news conference two days later,
Press Secretary
A press secretary or press officer is a senior advisor who provides advice on how to deal with the news media and, using news management techniques, helps their employer to maintain a positive public image and avoid negative media coverage.
Dutie ...
Sarah Huckabee Sanders
Sarah Elizabeth Huckabee Sanders ( Huckabee; born August 13, 1982) is an American politician serving as the 47th governor of Arkansas since 2023. Sanders is the daughter of Mike Huckabee, who served from 1996 to 2007 as Arkansas's 44th governor ...
said Trump described Putin's suggestion as an "interesting idea" and Trump "wants to work with his team and determine if there is any validity that would be helpful to the process".
On July 19, shortly before the Senate was to vote on a resolution opposing the idea, Sanders stated that Trump "disagreed" with the Putin proposal. The Senate approved the
non-binding "sense of the Senate" resolution on a 98–0 vote; it stated that no current or former diplomat or other government employee should be made available to the Russians for interrogation.
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
Following the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
, McFaul and Head of the Office of the
President of Ukraine
The president of Ukraine (, ) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, conducts negotiations and concludes international treaties. ...
Andrii Yermak
Andriy Borysovych Yermak (; born 21 November 1971)
1 ...
headed an expert group called the
Yermak-McFaul Expert Group on Russian Sanctions, which developed an individual sanctions roadmap with plans to tighten
sanctions against Russia.
McFaul debated the Russian invasion with
John Mearsheimer
John Joseph Mearsheimer (; born December 14, 1947) is an American political scientist and international relations scholar. He is R. Wendell Harrison Distinguished Service Professor in the University of Chicago.
Mearsheimer is best known for dev ...
in May 2022. McFaul has taken a position on the Russian invasion of Ukraine identifying Putin as a culprit in conducting the invasion of Ukraine against the position of Mearsheimer that Putin is pursuing a
realist geopolitical plan to secure Russian national interests in the presence of perceived threats from an expanding
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
.
In an interview with
Lex Fridman
Alexei "Lex" Fridman (; born 15 August 1983) is an American computer scientist and podcaster. Since 2018, he has hosted the ''Lex Fridman Podcast'', where he interviews notable figures from various fields such as science, technology, sports, and ...
, Mearsheimer states that McFaul, as ambassador, told Putin "that
edidn't have to worry about
NATO expansion because the United States was a benign
hegemon
Hegemony (, , ) is the political, economic, and military predominance of one state over other states, either regional or global.
In Ancient Greece (ca. 8th BC – AD 6th c.), hegemony denoted the politico-military dominance of the ''hegemon'' ...
. And I asked Mike what Putin's response was to that. Mike said that Putin didn't believe" in the benignity of US hegemony. Mearsheimer goes on to relate that "what Mike thinks or any American thinks doesn't matter. What matters is what Putin thinks."
Books
McFaul was the author of over twenty books,
among which are:
*
''Post-communist Politics: Democratic Prospects In Russia And Eastern Europe'' (1993)
*
''The Troubled Birth of Russian Democracy: Parties, Personalities, and Programs'' (1993)
* ''Understanding Russia's 1993 Parliamentary Elections: Implications for U.S. Foreign Policy'' (1995)
*
''Russia's 1996 Presidential Election: The End of Polarized Politics'' (1997)
*
''Russia's Unfinished Revolution: Political Change from Gorbachev to Putin'' (2001)
*
''Between Dictatorship and Democracy: Russian Post-Communist Political Reform'' (2010)
* ''Russia's Unfinished Revolution: Political Change from Gorbachev to Putin'' (2015)
* ''From Cold War to Hot Peace: An American Ambassador in Putin's Russia'' (2018)
Political positions
In 2003, McFaul supported
regime change
Regime change is the partly forcible or coercive replacement of one government regime with another. Regime change may replace all or part of the state's most critical leadership system, administrative apparatus, or bureaucracy. Regime change may ...
in
Iraq
Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...
.
After the
2016 presidential election, he became a regular commentator on
MSNBC
MSNBC is an American cable news channel owned by the NBCUniversal News Group division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. Launched on July 15, 1996, and headquartered at 30 Rockefeller Plaza in Manhattan, the channel primarily broadcasts r ...
and
social media
Social media are interactive technologies that facilitate the Content creation, creation, information exchange, sharing and news aggregator, aggregation of Content (media), content (such as ideas, interests, and other forms of expression) amongs ...
, and was frequently critical of the policies and actions of President
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
with regard to Russia.
McFaul supported the
Iran nuclear deal
The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA; (, BARJAM)), also known as the Iran nuclear deal or Iran deal, is an agreement to limit the Iranian nuclear program in return for sanctions relief and other provisions. The agreement was finalize ...
.
In July 2019, McFaul wrote that
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...
's officials "champion the advantages of their system—an ability to undertake massive infrastructure projects, the capacity to manage income inequalities and a commitment to harmony in government and society. In contrast, polarized U.S. politics in the Trump era seem to impede any major initiative, be it infrastructure development or addressing income inequality."
Recognition
Coit D. Blacker called McFaul "the leading scholar of his generation, maybe the leading scholar, on post-Communist Russia" and a Stanford news release said his knowledge of Russia "was an important resource to politicians. He advised President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
on his dealings with Russian President
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...
."
Personal life
McFaul and his wife, Donna Norton, married in 1993 and have two children.
See also
*
Russia under Vladimir Putin
Since 1999, Vladimir Putin has continuously served as either President of Russia, president (Acting President of Russia, acting president from 1999 to 2000; two terms 2000–2008, three terms 2012–present) or Prime Minister of Russia (three ...
Footnotes
External links
Personal WebsiteBiography at Stanford Center for Democracy Development and the Rule of LawBiography at Carnegie Endowment for International PeaceOverview of the Michael McFaul collectionat th
Hoover Institution Archives*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:McFaul, Michael
Russian studies scholars
Ambassadors of the United States to Russia
United States National Security Council staffers
Obama administration personnel
21st-century American diplomats
American political scientists
Stanford University Department of Political Science faculty
Hoover Institution people
American foreign policy writers
American anti-communists
American Rhodes Scholars
Alumni of St John's College, Oxford
Stanford University alumni
People from Bozeman, Montana
1963 births
Living people
Bozeman High School alumni