Rice confronts assertive Russia with less leverage

[Miss Chybil]

Source: Rueters

By Arshad Mohammed

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will grapple with a newly assertive Kremlin that rejects U.S. views on missile defense, Kosovo and the course of Russian democracy when she visits Moscow next week.

What is unclear is how much leverage she has to influence Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has made no secret of his dislike of American foreign policy in Iraq and elsewhere, his mistrust of U.S. missile defense plans in Europe and his desire for Russia to play a bigger role on the world stage.

Rice's trip to Moscow on Monday and Tuesday will be her first extended talks with Russia's top leadership since Putin stunned the West with a harsh critique of U.S. policies in a February 10 speech in Munich.

Among other things, Putin accused the United States of making the world a more dangerous place by pursuing policies designed to make it "one single master." In an apparent allusion to the U.S.-led war in Iraq, he said "unilateral actions have not resolved conflicts but made them worse."

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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN0928894620070511?feedType=RSS

[acmavm]

1. With LESS leverage? What leverage. Putin couldn't care less

what this bunch says.

[Gman]

2. Putin will ask her why she is wasting his time

if nothing is going to change.

Hopefully, Putin will chew her ass out from one end to the other and tell her to take that back to her boss.

[NastyRiffraff]

3. Putin doesn't just dislike American foreign policy...

He, like most world leaders and diplomats, probably dislikes CONDI. She is worse than useless as Sec. of State. Nancy Pelosi got more accomplished in Syria than Condi did, or could.

[LiberalFighter]

4. If she brought Coulter along that might be sufficient leverage

Would it help to threaten Putin that Coulter would stay in Russia?

[lpbk2713]

5. Trump was right ....

In an interview broadcast on Fox TV, he says Rice seems like a nice person, but when it comes to her role as the nation’s chief negotiator, she does not have what it takes. Americans “want someone that knows how to negotiate, that knows the art of the deal,” he explains. “In all fairness, I see Condoleezza Rice - she goes on a plane, she gets off a plane, she waves, she goes there to meet some dictator … They talk, she leaves, she waves, the plane takes off. Nothing happens, it’s a joke, nothing ever happens".

:rofl: :rofl:

[tabasco]

6. We have lost enormous standing and influence in the world because of the corrupt Bush regime.

One example is the USA's enormous financial debt, which gives the creditor nations more leverage over us!

[TheLastMohican]

7. Russia will certainly play a bigger role

in world affairs whether Condi wants or not.