Public diplomacy—giving big speeches directly to the people of adversary nations to inspire them about democratic values—was a core Cold War success factor; Ronald Reagan's 1988 Moscow State University speech and his Spaso House dinner with Soviet dissidents exemplified the strategy of bypassing communist leadership to speak to ordinary Russians about freedom and democracy.
factualpending
Speaker
Michael McFaulEvidence Quote
“And in the room are all the Jewish dissidents, the religious activists, the NGO Samizdat people, all the the society that the the Soviet Union was trying to crush. And Reagan was very clear. He's like, 'You are part of this country too. I acknowledge you, and we are going to engage with you.'”
Source
“They’re Not Like Us”: Michael McFaul on Autocrats vs. Democrats and the Fight for the 21st Century— Hoover InstitutionCreated: 8/11/2026, 7:32:51 AM
My Notes
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