American Academy of Arts & Sciences
Designing U.S. Policy Toward Russia

Reactions to the Moscow Summit
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From July 6-8, President Obama visited Russia for a bilateral summit with Russian President Dmitri Medvedev. Expert reaction to the summit has been mixed, though even the most negative assessments judge the summit a (very qualified) success. Most, though not all, gave very high marks for style. The most frequent criticism was of Obama’s management of the Medvedev-Putin tandemocracy. Some approve of Obama making Medvedev an “equal partner,” but many were critical of a statement Obama made before the summit describing Putin as “having one foot in the past.” These commentators stress the risk of not treating Putin with the appropriate level of respect, especially since he remains perhaps the most important figure in Russian politics.

On substance, there was near uniform consensus about the importance of the agreements on Afghanistan, especially the transport accord. Many are also reasonably pleased with the statements on the START follow-on agreement, but most note that the agreement itself is rather unimpressive (it requires very minor additional reductions); instead, the real achievement is in agreeing to these concrete deliverables while successfully navigating around the thorny issue of missile defense. Experts are, on balance, pleased with the new Bilateral Commission, though some worry that asymmetry between Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s power and that of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, will impede its effectiveness.

All agree that this summit represents (or should represent) only a beginning. The real key to success will be in disciplining both sides to follow through on their agreements, and give the relationship the priority, visibility, and commitment it requires. If this does not happen, the atmospherics of the summit will fall flat.

Below are links to articles evaluating the style, substance, and outcomes of the Moscow Summit:

  Barack, Dmitry, and (offstage) Vladimir – The Economist
  Evolutionary Road – Oksana Antonenko
  Obama Puts Medvedev Ahead of Putin – Anne Applebaum
  Looking Beyond the Reset – Yevgeny Bazhanov
  The Real Breakthrough at the Russia Summit – Samuel Charap and Andrew J. Grotto
  Obama and the Moscow Summit: A Job Well Done – James F. Collins
  Reset Reviewed – Mikhail Gorbachev
  From Russia — not with love, but with results - Nina Hachigian
  Obama and Medvedev Off to a Good Start - Daryl G. Kimball and Tom Z. Collina
  Words for a Russian Ghetto – Masha Lipman
  Obama’s Consensus Diplomacy Put to the Test – Fyodor Lukyanov
  Message from Moscow: Solid but Modest Progress - Jacqueline McLaren Miller
  Obama in Moscow - perhaps a B-minus? - Wayne Merry
  Medvedev Under Obama’s Charm - Oleg Reut and Peter Rutland
  Obama Surprises Russia – Vladimir Ryzhkov
  An Uncertain Reset – Dimitri K. Simes


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