I disagree. Most intellectuals are not against Russia. We all know that we owe and share far too much history, culture and science with it. Russia is very much part of our collective European identity, not only geographically.

The spin you are now witnessing is an opportunisticly constructed political self-serving one. Just watch Marcon talking to Putin only a few years ago...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TkeS6if-9jM

And read the many European authors like Glenn Diesen, Kees van der Pijl, David A. Hughes and young independent authors like Diedert de Wagt. The picture they all paint is quite clear.