Editing Anti-Russian sentiment (section)

{{short description|Dislike or fear of Russia, its people or its culture}}
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{{For|opposition towards the current government of Russia|Opposition to Vladimir Putin in Russia}}
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[[File:Anti-Russian graffiti in Tbilisi, 2022 (cropped).jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|Anti-Russian graffiti in [[Tbilisi]], [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]]]]
'''Anti-Russian sentiment''' or '''Russophobia''' is the dislike or fear of [[Russia]], [[Russians|Russian people]], or [[Culture of Russia|Russian culture]]. The opposite of Russophobia is [[Russophilia]].

Historically, Russophobia has included state-sponsored and grassroots mistreatment and discrimination, as well as [[propaganda]] containing anti-Russian sentiment.<ref>{{cite journal|last=McNally|first=Raymond T.|title=The Origins of Russophobia in France: 1812–1830|journal=[[Slavic Review]]|jstor=3004165|date=1958|volume=17|number=2|pages=173–189|doi=10.2307/3004165 | issn = 1049-7544}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Williams|first=Robert C.|title=Russians in Germany: 1900–1914|journal=[[Journal of Contemporary History]]|jstor=259894|date=1966|volume=1|number=4|pages=121–149|doi=10.1177/002200946600100405|s2cid=154477120}}</ref> In Europe, Russophobia was based on various more or less fantastic fears of Russian conquest of Europe, such as those based on [[The Will of Peter the Great]] forgery documented in France in the 19th century and later resurfacing in Britain as a result of fears of a Russian attack on [[British Raj|British-colonized India]] in relation to the [[Great Game]]. Pre-existing anti-Russian sentiment in Germany is considered to be one of the factors influencing treatment of Russian population under [[Operation Barbarossa|German occupation]] during World War II.

A variety of popular culture [[cliché]]s and negative [[stereotypes about Russians]] still exist, notably in the [[Western world]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Brook|first=Tom|title=Hollywood stereotypes: Why are Russians the bad guys|work=[[BBC News]]|publisher=[[BBC]]|date=5 November 2014|access-date=1 August 2022|url=https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20141106-why-are-russians-always-bad-guys}}</ref> Some individuals may have prejudice or hatred against Russians due to history, racism, propaganda, or ingrained stereotypes.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2210-7975_hrd-9211-20180082|title=Submission to the United States Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination|journal=Human Rights Documents Online|doi=10.1163/2210-7975_hrd-9211-20180082|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Framing Russia: The construction of Russia and Chechnya in the western media|first=Felicitas|last=Macgilchrist|publisher=[[Europa-Universitat Viadrina Frankfurt (Oder)]]|date=21 January 2009|url=https://www.kuwi.europa-uni.de/de/lehrstuhl/vs/anthro/habilprom/macgilchrist_felicitas/index.html|access-date=5 April 2015|archive-date=28 April 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120428214622/https://www.kuwi.europa-uni.de/de/lehrstuhl/vs/anthro/habilprom/macgilchrist_felicitas/index.html|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Le|first=E´lisabeth|date=2006|title=Collective Memories and Representations of National Identity in Editorials: Obstacles to a renegotiation of intercultural relations|url=https://www.sfu.ca/cmns/courses/2012/487/1-Extra%20Readings/le%20journalists%20and%20national%20identity%20memory.pdf|journal=Journalism Studies|volume=7|issue=5|doi=10.1080/14616700600890372|pages=708–728|s2cid=59404040|access-date=14 October 2012|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304061720/https://www.sfu.ca/cmns/courses/2012/487/1-Extra%20Readings/le%20journalists%20and%20national%20identity%20memory.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|first=Olaf|last=Mertelsmann|author-link=Olaf Mertelsmann|url=http://www.erm.ee/pdf/pro19/mertelsmann.pdf|title=How the Russians Turned into the Image of the 'National Enemy' of the Estonians|publisher=Estonian National Museum|access-date=14 October 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130524164246/http://www.erm.ee/pdf/pro19/mertelsmann.pdf|archive-date=24 May 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Luostarinen|first=Heikki|date=May 1989|title=Finnish Russophobia: The Story of an Enemy Image|journal=Journal of Peace Research|volume=26|issue=2|pages=123–137|doi=10.1177/0022343389026002002|jstor=423864|s2cid=145354618}}</ref>
Negative views of Russia are widespread, but most prevalent in Western liberal democracies.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.allianceofdemocracies.org/initiatives/the-copenhagen-democracy-summit/dpi-2022/|title=Democracy Perception Index 2022|publisher=Alliance of Democracies|date=30 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://docs.cdn.yougov.com/kkh07ajgn8/Globalism2020%20TBI%20China%20Reputation%20Annual%20Comparison.pdf|title=Globalism 2019/20|publisher=YouGov|date=27 December 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Views-of-Russia-Topline-for-Release_UPDATED.pdf|title=Pew Research Center, Spring 2019 Global Attitudes Survey|publisher=Pew Research Center|date=7 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210326162836/https://www.pewresearch.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/Views-of-Russia-Topline-for-Release_UPDATED.pdf|archive-date=26 March 2021|url-status=live}}</ref>

Some analysts have argued that official Western rhetoric and journalism about Russian actions abroad, such as the [[Second Chechen War]], the 2008 [[Russo-Georgian war]] and [[Russian interference in the 2016 United States election]], have contributed to the resurgence of anti-Russian sentiment.<ref name="carnegie2001" /><ref name="poznerydn">{{cite news|last1=Lopez|first1=Oscar|title=US-Russian journalist talks rise of Putin|url=https://yaledailynews.com/blog/2018/09/28/us-russian-journalist-talks-rise-of-putin/ |access-date=6 June 2022|publisher=Yale Daily News|date=28 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220227084407/https://yaledailynews.com/blog/2018/09/28/us-russian-journalist-talks-rise-of-putin/ |archive-date=27 February 2022 |url-status=live|quote=Pozner also claimed that mainstream journalists in both the U.S. and Russia contributed to the formation of the negative opinions the citizens of both countries have of each other.}}</ref><ref name="2008georgiausrussia" />
Anti-Russian sentiment rose considerably after the start of the [[Russo-Ukrainian war|Russian war against Ukraine]] in 2014.<ref name="pew-attitudes-2014" />
By the summer of 2020, the majority of Western nations had unfavorable views of Russia.<ref name="pew202014nations" />

Following the [[2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine]], Russian-speaking immigrants experienced harassment, open hostility and discrimination.<ref name="reuters2022attacks">{{Cite news|date=5 April 2022|title=Germany reports rise in attacks against Russian, Ukrainian migrants|language=en|work=Reuters|url=https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/germany-reports-rise-attacks-against-russian-ukrainian-migrants-2022-04-05/ |access-date=3 June 2022}}</ref><ref name="wapo2022childrenenemies" /><ref name="wapo2022hostility" />

Some researchers have described use of "Russophobia" narratives to be a tactic used by [[Vladimir Putin]]. These narratives emphasize the belief that Russia faces an existential threat from the Western powers and must take drastic measures to ensure domestic stability including support for the ongoing [[Russo-Ukrainian War|war in Ukraine]]. Such narratives have been described as [[Russian imperialism]].<ref name="mcfaul15" /><ref name="wapo2206" /><ref name="jdpz" />