Few more quotes from from quick googling of Lucas are below. It's even funny to read his dire predictions on Russia in 2000/2001. To me he looks patented Russophobe, consistently highly negative of Russia.

Edward Lucas: The sick party line on Eastern Europe

Twice at parties in the last week I've found myself gasping for breath. Each time I was chatting to pillars of the right-wing British establishment, solid Cold Warriors with whom I used to agree about the big questions of Europe's future - America in, Germans down, Russia out - and so forth.

This comment regarding Lucas's Economist 2001 Russia survey is spot on:

New Russia survey dishes out an old, tired tale

...
The reaction to the report in the audience was, predictably, negative, and probably best summarized by panelist and economist Vladimir Mau, who said that while he admired Lucas' writing immensely, he could not reconcile the country being surveyed with the one he lives in.

...
In fact, when I finished reading the survey the only conclusion I could draw is that Russia today was not the survey's focus. The real story in its midst was Lucas himself: his deep-seated anxiety, cynicism, frustration and tiredness with the country.