U.S. President Barack Obama arrived in Moscow on Monday on his first official visit to Russia. But despite his determination to “reset” U.S.-Russian relations, Obama will likely fail in the attempt, leaving supporters of both the “realistic” and the “values-based” camps without any cause for celebration.
Obama will not agree to a tacit arrangement in which Washington and Moscow divide their respective “spheres of influence” among the former Soviet republics, giving Moscow the final word on the fate of those peoples. Deep in their hearts, Russia’s current leaders continue to dream of re-establishing the Russian or Soviet empire. Their main yardstick for success remains territorial expansion rather than economic prosperity.
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