George Bush and Condoleezza Rice have been sharing with the press their views on how to handle Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Bush, it must be said, seems to have a very clear vision. Condoleezza Rice, on the other hand, got herself into a terrible tangle trying to explain to journalists whether or not Putin’s plans for his political future would be on the agenda when they met.
First up, George Bush explains his recipe for un-mixing Putin:
There are a lot of people that are — a lot of Americans are investing in Russia because they have found there to be a decent climate for their particular industry — financial industry, for example, comes to mind. On the other hand, there are some mixed signals coming out of Russia when it comes to honoring contracts in the energy business. So we made — when those signals get mixed, I try to un-mix them with President Putin.
(Source: Wall Street Journal, Interview with President Bush)
And now, Condoleezza Rice, desperately tries to clamber out a hole:
QUESTION: You said you wouldn’t turn down an opportunity to discuss with President Putin his thoughts about being prime minister. But do you not plan to proactively raise that with him? And does it not give you pause, the notion, even if it’s constitutionally permissible in Russia, that one man would be president for two terms and then potentially take on another very powerful position?
SECRETARY RICE: I’m not going to speculate about something that is speculative, as to what President Putin will or will not do. You know I have a deep interest in Russian politics that goes back a long way, and so it’s great to have a chance to talk about those things. But in terms of speculating about what he’ll do or having a view based on that speculation, I don’t — I just don’t think that’s appropriate.
QUESTION: Are you going to ask him what he plans to do?
SECRETARY RICE: I’m not going to tell you what I’m going to ask him. (Laughter.) What we have talked about is the need for there to be vital and viable political institutions in Russia, kind of competitive political institutions. You know, we’ve made — we’ve had those kinds of conversations. But this is a political system that’s in transition, and so I — no, I’m not going to get into speculation with President Putin about what he will or will not do.
(Source: State Department – briefing en route to Moscow).
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Who cares what Washington thinks? You are seriously quoting two idiots.
Russia will be stronger than the US economically in 15 years.
Get used to it Jack!
As per the above post’s title, here’s reverse: how to handle President Putin.
“You know I have a deep interest in Russian politics that goes back a long way, and so it’s great to have a chance to talk about those things.”
Rice sounds like she is a university professor who is living a dream of being able to discuss issues policy makers face to face. I hope that she is not conducting experiments in international relations just to see how the other parties react.
If she is, I’d love to see her post-retirement journal article(s)!
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