publication

Managing the Cold War

Acclaim for Michael Alexander

The Lord Kerr of Kinlochard, Head of the UK Diplomatic Service, 1997-2002

Here we see again the dazzling sheen we so much miss, the agility in argument, the elegance in exposition.

And here too we see how firmly held – though constantly re-tested – were the convictions from which he spoke.

Sir Rodric Braithwaite, UK Ambassador to the Soviet Union/Russian Federation, 1988-1992

He had what few officials have: a genuinely creative mind, combined with a determination – within the limits of propriety – to see his ideas on policy adopted by ministers. He was a man of penetrating intelligence, lucid and forceful to an extent that could sometimes seem overbearing to his interlocutors.

Professor Christopher Coker, London School of Economics

These are the reflections of a man who for much of his working life found himself at the centre of the diplomatic containment of the Soviet Union. His conclusion is that the West played its hand rather well. And he should know for he was one of the principal players. To use his own naval metaphor, he helped steer the alliance on a sensible course to a by no means inevitable conclusion.

Review of Managing the Cold War by Max Hastings, in The Guardian