The Relationship of the US and Putin From 2000 to the Ukrainian War
When Vladimir Putin assumed the Presidency of the Russian Federation after a chaotic post-Soviet decade, there was hope in Washington and the West that the rapprochement begun under Yeltsin would continue to grow. However, over the next several years, as the countries of Eastern Europe rushed to embrace the EU and NATO, Putin began to assert more authoritarian control over Russia and pushed against what he perceived as encroachment on the area of traditional Russian influence and control. The West and U.S. were slow to recognize and respond. Join historian George Deutsch, as he examines the deterioration of this relationship and its consequences, leading up to the Ukrainian War.
Location: Jefferson Educational Society - 3207 State St, Erie, PA 16508
Date/Time: Monday, February 17, 7pm to 8:30pm
Admission: $10/person; $15 with guest
George Deutsch, B.S., Executive Director, Emeritus, of the Erie County Historical Society/Hagen History Center is a leader in historical preservation and multiple public history projects. In 2022, he concluded a five-year, $11 Million, building and exhibit construction project for the History Center. He has co-founded several historical organizations related to the Civil War and the War of 1812 in his hometown of Erie, Pennsylvania, including the Flagship Niagara League, which played a central role in reconstructing the U.S. Brig Niagara and creating the Erie Maritime Museum. He has taught history courses at the Chautauqua Institution in New York since 2005 and has lectured on both political and historical topics at Erie’s Jefferson Educational Society since 2010. For 30 years he has given numerous presentations on Civil War history across seven states and Washington, D.C. In 2023, Deutsch finished a three-year term on the Historical Marker Committee for the Pennsylvania State Historic Preservation Office. He continues to serve as a representative for the America250PA Commission. He has been published in numerous journals and also served as a consultant to National Geographic magazine for its Civil War sesquicentennial issue. Deutsch was honored twice by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission and received the Local History Award in 2003 from the Erie County Historical Society. He earned a degree in history from Mercyhurst University and was also educated at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. He is currently writing a new book on the famous Civil War regiment, the 83rd Pennsylvania Infantry from northwestern Pennsylvania.
