In the annals of U.S. diplomacy, few honeymoons have been shorter than the one granted to Michael A. McFaul, who arrived in Russia on Jan. 14 as the new U.S. ambassador. Toward the end of his second full day on the job, a commentator on state-controlled Channel 1 suggested during a prime-time newscast that McFaul was sent to Moscow to foment revolution. A columnist for the newspaper Izvestia chimed in the next day, saying his appointment marked a return to the 18th century, when “an ambassador’s participation in intrigues and court conspiracies was ordinary business.” McFaul, 48, has arrived in a city churning with conjecture and paranoia, as the Kremlin tries to portray a wave of anti-government protest as a project driven by the U.S. If the blast of venom that greeted McFaul was intended as a warning to maintain a low profile in his new role, he seems unlikely to comply. At the end of his first week, he was exuberant, saying his goal is to “destroy Cold War stereotypes,” especially “gross statements” about the United States’ intentions in Russia. McFaul is an unusual choice for ambassador to Moscow, even more so than it appeared when the decision was announced in May 2011. At that point, he was seen primarily as President Barack Obama’s top Russia adviser and the architect of the so-called reset policy, which brought an end to the deep freeze of the late years of George W. Bush’s administration and invited Russia to cooperate on projects like nuclear nonproliferation. From the Kremlin’s viewpoint, it was a positive sign that McFaul, only the second non-career diplomat to get the post in 30 years, is a member of Obama’s inner circle, reflecting the priority the president puts on Russia. Nine months later, the Kremlin has been shaken by protests challenging Prime Minister Vladimir V. Putin, who hopes to win a third term as president in five weeks. Amid repeated accusations that the State Department had mobilized the protesters, attention swung to McFaul’s earlier career — as a political scientist who specialized in revolution and democracy-building.

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