US writer and scholar on Russia, Suzanne Massie, who served as an adviser to President Ronald Reagan, has received the medal of The Russian Foreign Ministry "for contribution to international cooperation."
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th November, 2022) US writer and scholar on Russia, Suzanne Massie, who served as an adviser to President Ronald Reagan, has received the medal of The Russian Foreign Ministry "for contribution to international cooperation."
The medal, signed by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, was presented to Massie on Tuesday at the Foreign Ministry Representation in St. Petersburg.
"If Lavrov was there, I would kiss him on the cheek. The words he used to describe the medal 'for contribution to international cooperation' characterizes my activity best of all," Massie shared with Sputnik upon receiving the award. "That's the way it is, I have always worked to bring Russia and the United States closer together, especially in the most difficult times of this relationship."
Massie's representative in Russia and a manager of the International Diplomatic Club Balthazar Schaldenbrand told Sputnik that St. Petersburg was chosen for the event because it is "the city of her heart."
"It is the city where she spent most of her work to bring the two peoples closer together," Schaldenbrand added.
Massie also pointed out to Sputnik that the Presidential Library in St. Petersburg should be the place where her archive will be kept.
At the end of September, she had already visited the library and discussed handing over her archive to the institution.
Massie's collection includes Reagan's personal letters, her correspondence with US President Bill Clinton, Vice President Albert Gore and other political and other personalities, including writer Alexander Solzhenitsyn and choreographer George Balanchine.
The author's research papers and original manuscripts of her books on the history and culture of Russia are also included in the archive.
Massie advised Reagan on Russia from 1984-1988 and played a significant role in the final years of the Cold War. She taught the president the Russian proverb, "Trust, but verify," which Reagan famously used during the nuclear disarmament talks with the Soviet Union.
Massie is fluent in Russian and has written numerous books on Russia's history and culture.
