May 1—In the midst of the ongoing discussions between representatives of the United States and Russia about normalizing their diplomatic relations, Russian officials have recently made powerful statements about the historical precedents for friendship between the two nations. Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) issued a remarkable statement on April 16 titled “Eurofascism, Just as 80 Years Ago, Is the Common Enemy of Moscow and Washington.” It proposes that the United States rediscover its unique history, which would also put Russian-American relations back on a healthy footing, with a joint mission to free the world from centuries of “Eurofascism.”

The SVR statement presents as models for present-day cooperation, past moments of alignment between the two powers against both Great Britain and France, including during the Suez Crisis of 1956 and during the Crimean War (1853-1856), when the U.S. sympathized with Russia.

On the other side, the conflict in Ukraine is presented as the latest example of what it calls Anglo-European adventurism, with the U.S. pulled into conflict by Old World powers that support the Kiev regime, which glorifies “the Bandera executioners, who fought on Hitler’s side, and today itself commits numerous crimes against humanity.” The statement cites other historic examples, such as the warm ties between the British aristocracy and the Nazis, or the French SS soldiers who defended Berlin to the end.

“It is emphasized that the United States is free due to the willingness of the ancestors of modern Americans to confront such dictatorships as the British Monarchy or the Jacobin Revolution,” the statement declares, in what should be interpreted as an appeal to Washington to stop defending a collapsing European order and recall its own revolutionary legacy.

Just a few days after this statement by the Russian foreign intelligence agency was issued, a similar message to Americans was sent by Nikolai Patrushev, who was the director of Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) from August 1999 through May 2008, succeeding Vladimir Putin, with whom he has worked closely for more than two-and-a-half decades. After serving as secretary of the Security Council of Russia from May 2008 to May 2024, he is now an aide to the President.

In an interview published on April 21 in the daily Kommersant, Patrushev speaks of Russia-U.S. common interests, and alliances throughout history, that are part of the two countries’ joint heritage. He, too, brings up the importance of historical examples that highlight their collaboration, including in World War II, that should serve as “a symbolic basis” for the dialogue needed today.

At one point, he mentions a much less well-known precedent, during the American Civil War, when the British and the French were planning to intervene on the American continent, but Russia decided to back “the legitimate government of Abraham Lincoln,” and was almost “the only great power to support America at this most difficult moment.”

SVR April 16 Release: Examples of Past U.S.-Russia Partnerships

The following excerpt is from the concluding section of the April 16 release issued by the Press Bureau of the Foreign Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation, headlined, “Eurofascism, Just As 80 Years Ago, Is the Common Enemy of Moscow and Washington.”

Experts recall that in the past there have been many moments when Washington and Moscow became partners in opposing London and Paris in the international arena. A typical example of this is the Suez Crisis of 1956. The tough position of the USSR and the U.S.A. stopped the triple aggression of Great Britain, France and Israel against Egypt. Another page of history that is now little known in the West are the events of the Crimean War of 1853-1856, when Great Britain, France, the Ottoman Empire and the Kingdom of Sardinia united against Russia (similar to today’s “coalition of the willing”). Despite formal neutrality, the sympathies of the White House in this confrontation were on the side of St. Petersburg. This is evidenced by the participation of American doctors in the treatment of the defenders of Sevastopol, the “request of 300 riflemen from Kentucky” to send them to defend this city, the activities of the Russian-American Company to supply gunpowder and food to our fortresses and possessions on the Pacific coast.

It is noteworthy that during that Crimean “expedition” Anglo-French troops bombed Odessa, ravaged Yevpatoria, Kerch, Mariupol, Berdyansk and other cities of Novorossiya, which the West calls Ukrainian today. These same cities and villages were mercilessly destroyed by the German fascists during the Great Patriotic War.

80 years ago, all the peoples of the Soviet Union participated in the sacred battles against the German and other European fascists. In Crimea, there are monuments to the soldiers of the units formed in the former republics of the USSR—Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia—who died during the storming of Sevastopol in 1944. The same memorials, as well as the graves of the victims of the Holocaust, whose fascist executioners Kyiv sympathizes with, and about which Israel is still “unaware,” are scattered throughout the territory of Donbass.

As for Russian-American relations in the context of past and current events, foreign expert circles express hope for a new unification of efforts by Moscow and Washington, capable of preventing the world from sliding into a new global conflict and resisting possible provocations from both Ukraine and the “crazy Europeans,” traditionally egged on by Great Britain.

Patrushev April 22 Interview: U.S.-Russia Bear Joint Responsibility

The following quotations are the concluding exchanges of the interview with Nikolai Patrushev in the Kommersant newspaper, No. 73, April 22, 2025, headlined, “Challenges and Threats at Sea for Russia Are Intensifying in Many Ways,” conducted by Elena Chernenko. Besides serving as aide to President Putin, Patrushev is chairman of the Russian Maritime Board.

Kommersant: You mentioned the atmosphere of trust between Russia and the U.S. Do you think it can be restored at all now? And how can this be done?

Patrushev: This can and should be done. Russia and the United States, as great powers, historically bear special responsibility for the fate of the world. And the experience of past decades or even centuries, shows that in the most difficult, critical moments, our countries have always managed to overcome differences. I think that today the first step could be a joint appeal to this historical experience, which could serve as a symbolic basis for restarting the Russian-American dialogue.

Kommersant: Remember the meeting on the Elbe on April 25, 1945?

Patrushev: And that too, although there are many more episodes here. The Arctic convoys, Lend-Lease—all these are excellent examples of how Russia and the United States can cooperate despite their differences. But we can also recall lesser-known examples.

In my opinion, a magnificent, but undeservedly forgotten page in Russian-American history is the North American Expedition of the Russian fleet in 1863. This was a critical moment in the history of the United States—the country was plunged into the chaos of the Civil War, there was a real threat of its territorial disintegration, and the British and French were hatching plans for intervention on the American continent. And it was the Russian Empire that decided to support Washington and the legitimate government of Abraham Lincoln, sending two powerful squadrons to both coasts of the United States.

This step was met with great enthusiasm by both the American elite and ordinary citizens, because Russia was almost the only great power that supported America at this difficult moment. Russian sailors were received in the White House, parades were held in their honor, and the American Secretary of the Navy wrote in his diary, “God bless the Russians.” I think that such episodes of our common history today need to be remembered, studied, and even thought about perpetuating them.