Stefan Hedlund is a Swedish academic and historian whose primary field of interest is Russian history. He has studied the recent history of Russia and Central Asia, the collapse of the Soviet Union and its aftermath, as well as the uneven trajectory of Western social and economic models in post-Soviet Russia.

The discussion at the HeadRead literature festival in Tallinn covered these topics – and what people get wrong about Russia – and you can watch the conversation with Estonian academic Aimar Ventsel above.

Hedlund said one of the problems with academia is that it is too heavily focused on Russia, and he supports efforts to decolonize and broaden curricula.

"I think the biggest service we can do for the Ukrainians today is acknowledge that Ukraine does exist, which the Russians refuse to accept. Ukraine has a right to exist /.../ there is a Ukrainian language, a Ukrainian literature, a Ukrainian state and a Ukrainian nation," he said.

He also touched on what analysts and experts get wrong about Russia.

Hedlund said it is "impossible" to argue with people who claim to love and romanticize Russia, its culture and its history. "A person who is in love is not rational. So, you cannot have a rational discourse with people who believe that Russia is this wonderful Russia," he said.

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