ABSTRACT
It would be natural to assume that the exploration of the seemingly unreal possibility for an American-Russian alliance involves the analysis of the factors that stimulate or block it. The very start of such analysis would reveal the existence of a powerful negative factor that eliminates even the thought for joint American-Russian action against the jihadist assault on the world. From the topic of modernization, Stephen F. Cohen's analysis takes a turn toward the modernizers in Russian history. He defines the "leap" model of reforms imposed from above as a nondemocratic by its nature and quotes the names of Peter the Great and Joseph Stalin as examples. The intensity and popular appeal of anti-Americanism in contemporary Russia represent the most serious obstacle for the establishment of an American-Russian alliance. The social background of postcommunist Russian anti-Americanism was created by confusion of some key political and economic terms that had acquired completely different meanings within the context of the Russian realities.
