I agree with Bianca that social degeneracy is hardly just a Russian phenomenon, and I certainly confirm that I see more than enough of it in the West, too. But hate crimes, while not unknown, do not feature as prominently in most Western countries as, based on reports in Russian media, they do in Russia. Possibly this is because Western countries have not had to live through the same extremely traumatic experiences as has Russia. Another unique factor in Russia is the millions of abused and traumatised children of the GULAG being channelled back into society along with their vacuous ethics and morality. There were so many of them that they and their offspring cannot help but inject some uniquely negative influence into society. I know that many Russians find hate crimes abhorrent, and by no means do I wish to characterise Russia by these or blame all Russians for it. There are many aspects of Russian civilization that I admire. But as RT (and many other Russian sources) point out, the problem exists to be overcome. As for Russia’s falsification of history, unfortunately this is not my obsession, Bianca. Rather, it is something which respected historians and commentators the world over agrees with and detail often, including many in Russia itself.

Sadly, Alex scorns the idea that Russia’s neighbours would like to help in the common challenge to heal Soviet era damage. Perhaps some of Russia’s neighbours may be hostile – I don’t know all of them well. But I know that the Baltics aren’t that way. While the Baltics will always resist Moscow’s efforts to superimpose upon them those Soviet era untruths which Moscow still continues to embrace, this does not mean that they are inherently anti-Russian. Why should they be? They have lived with Russia and with Russians for centuries and know them well. On a human level, there are many bonds of friendship and even family ties between their respective communities. It makes no logical sense for the Baltics to wish anything other than that their large eastern neighbour should be prosperous, successful, democratic, at peace within itself and at peace with them, as this will benefit everyone. As many of the problems they are they are having to overcome are the same, why not help one another in the process? Estonia maintains a fairly robust foreign aid program, and help to Russia has figured in several projects over the years. For example, in 2004 the Estonian Red Cross provided humanitarian aid for the vaccination of children in Pskov against hepatitis A, and for several years also provided humanitarian assistance to the children of Beslan. In 2001 Estonia financially supported trans-border co-operation between schools on the Russian and Estonian sides of Lake Peipsi. In 2000, the Estonian Foreign Policy Institute made a significant monetary contribution in support of a project to create the Pskov Regional Development Agency, with the aim of training Russian officials and the private sector in civil society and in regional cross-border co-operation. Estonia is a small country, and its capacity to help is limited. But within such limitations there is much more help that it is willing and able to give if Russia wanted to be a partner.