Russian President Vladimir Putin has cited the need to complete the formation of new cabinet ministers to excuse himself from attending the G-8 summit at Camp David. In an apparent retaliation, the White House announced that President Obama will not participate in the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, scheduled to be hosted by Putin in Vladivostok in September. Putin’s refusal to participate in the world’s most prestigious meeting can be seen as a rolling back of the “reset.” Putin’s gesture exposes not only his deep dislike of America and of …
On the eve of his third inauguration, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with U.S. National Security Advisor Tom Donilon for two hours to “compare notes” on global affairs, from Afghanistan to missile defense. Donilon brought Putin a lengthy memo from President Obama, which aims to develop a solid U.S.–Russian partnership. Putin, in return, promised “to go far” in boosting relations with the U.S., provided Russia will be treated as an equal partner. This is Putin 4.0, as he was elected president in 2000 and 2004, and his protégé, Prime Minister-designate …
During a recent missile defense conference in Moscow, Russian Chief of General Staff Nikolai Makarov stated, “A decision to use destructive force pre-emptively will be taken if the situation worsens.” Makarov was referring to U.S. plans to deploy its missile defenses in Europe to protect allies and forward-deployed troops. Russia’s threat exemplifies why the U.S. and allies need missile defenses: to protect themselves from such blackmail. Makarov’s outrageous threat raises questions about Russia’s seriousness as a partner for President Obama’s hallowed “reset” policy. It should give a pause to the …
On April 13, the Russian RIA Novosti news agency quoted a high-ranking source in the Russian defense ministry as saying, “A decision was made to deploy Russian warships near the Syrian shores on a permanent basis.” The source announced that Russia’s naval presence in the eastern Mediterranean had “nothing to do” with Syria. Russia’s naval maneuvering has everything to do with geopolitics. This news comes at a troubling time, as a fragile ceasefire holds in Syria. Russia, which acts as Syria’s political sugar daddy and weapons supplier, has continually vetoed …
Recently, 17 Senators expressed a concern over U.S. government trade ties to Rosoboronexport, a leading Russian arms exporter that supplies weapons to the defiant Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria. On March 12, the Senators addressed a letter to Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta stating that “Russia remains the top supplier of weapons to Syria, selling reportedly $1 billion or more worth of arms to Syria in 2011 alone.” These weapons are used to slaughter civilians opposing the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. Russian supplies range from ammunitions, sniper rifles, 240mm F-864 …
Germany has elected its 11th president: Joachim Gauck (72), a Lutheran pastor and internationally renowned human rights activist. The position of President of the Federal Republic of Germany is merely ceremonial, but several German presidents have used it as a bully pulpit over the past decades. The new German president became known to the public in 1990 as the principal custodian of the German Secret Police (Stasi) archives, a position he left in 2000. His impact was such that Germans soon associated his name with the Office of the Custodian, …
Not even a month after Azerbaijani counterintelligence services arrested Iranian agents planning terrorist attacks against Israeli diplomats and prominent members of the Jewish community, a network of 22 more Iranian agents were arrested Thursday. These alleged Iranian operatives were hired by the Iranian spy agencies to carry out terrorist attacks against the United States and Israeli targets as well as international oil companies, including BP. All of them are Azerbaijan citizens and were trained by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps. They were paid on a monthly basis. Recently, Azerbaijan’s ministers …
On Monday, Washington and Moscow clashed yet again in the U.N. Security Council over what to do about the bloody conflict in Syria. Neither side came up with a solution the other one agrees to. But this rivalry is about much more than just Syria. According to the AP wire report, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton refused to compare “premeditated murders” carried by President Bashar al-Assad’s “military machine” with the self-defense by civilians under siege by the Syrian military and security forces. On the other hand, Russian Foreign Minister …
On February 21, Azerbaijani counterintelligence services arrested Iranian agents planning terrorist attacks against Israeli diplomats and prominent members of the Jewish community. This is the second such cell being intercepted since the beginning of the year. This is a part of Iran’s shadow war against Israel conducted from New Delhi to Tbilisi, Georgia. Some say the attacks are a tit-for-tat for the alleged Israeli operations against Iranian nuclear scientists working on Tehran’s nuclear program. But there is more. Arrests of Iranian agents in Azerbaijan indicate the heightened level of Tehran’s …
President Obama and President of the Republic of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili recently announced that the two countries should start free-trade negotiations. Let’s hope both presidents are serious. Presidents Obama and Saakashvili should instruct the appropriate government agencies to expedite preparation of the agreement. The most recentU.S.trade agreements, with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea, each took more than five years to get from inception to implementation. This deal could get done in a fraction of that time. Both countries are already relatively open to international trade and investment, and the volume …
