5 barriers to a Russian-Western partnership

I thought this was an interesting read coming out of the Moscow Times. Essentially it works though the main barriers between Russian and western cooperation, highlighting a number of items which this blog has covered. Such as, the NATO expansion in eastern Europe and attempts by the USA to dominate the former states of the Soviet Union, Kyrgyzstan or Georgia for example.

Read the article here.

Russian Defense Spending to rise 60%!

Since Putin took control of Russia it seemed that the crumbled Soviet Empire of the 1990s was not going to last. Russia's latest move in strengthening its global position has been to increase defense spending by 60%! As anticipated, Russia is continuing to rise to take the place of the former Soviet Union.

Missile Shields in Europe

The U.S. is nearing the point of activating a missile defense shield in Southern Europe, the Washington Post reports. What strikes me as interesting about the whole European Missile Defense Shield program is that is smacks of wholehearted American Imperialism.

Allegedly, Iran is the primary concern in this situation but everyone knows that it is designed against Russia. What purpose would Iran have in launching a missile at Bulgaria, Italy or even Germany or France (the latter of the two did not participate in the Second Gulf War). The intent is the same as it was when Reagan pitched the idea in the 80s, limit Russia's capability in Europe.

Furthermore, why is the United States defending Southern Europe from Iran? Well, obviously there is a strong economic interest in the region and its quite valuable to the United States. But the method in which the U.S. is taking such proactive and costly measures to defend the European Union creates the illusion that these are American States we're protecting. Granted there are U.S. bases in Germany which could be targeted by Iran, the very fact that there continue to be U.S. bases in Germany 65 years after the end of World War II reinforces the notion that American leadership regards these European states as much more than foreign states.

When it is considered that these measures are designed to protect Europe from Russia, the situation takes on a whole new light. Essentially, America is trying to reconstruct the Cold War situation and put Europe in its back pocket again. This is especially important considering so many of the former communist states are now included in America's sphere of influence. The missile shield is a consolidation of power in Europe after post-Cold War gains.

On a side note, I find Barack Obama's position on the shield worthy of note. He campaigned on the premise of reducing America's activism abroad, or at least produced the illusion of this. He rejected the Bush style missile shield in Europe during the campaigning season and before, but once he'd achieved the high office his position resembles Bush's more than it contrasts with it. Upon taking office he elaborated that his disagreements with the Bush admin over the missile shield were that it was too rigid and he favored a more flexible system. Bush had wanted bases in Poland, much to Russia's chagrin. Obama wanted to remove these bases to improve relations with Russia... but only to place them in the Czech Republic and Bulgaria instead... much to the same intended effect as Bush. These developments regarding the missile shield prove that the Obama administration is much more Imperial than it seems...

The last dictator in Europe.

Looks like Lukashenko's time is up and Russia is making its move against the former Soviet Republic. It's no secret Russia has had Belarus in its pocket for some time now, in fact, the two are part of one "union state" though each has its own leadership. Russia is going to have to careful in their plans, to completely absorb Belarus might ward off some of the other nations which have shown recent interest in the "union state" or "customs union," namely Ukraine. But its obvious Lukashenko's time is up and Russia is ready for new leadership, for which ever reasons they have.

But the part that most interests me is the method Russia is using to dethrone the puppet President, they're highlighting his human rights abuses and authoritarianism and rallying the support of the Russian people. They did the same thing in Kyrgyzstan, as the article has noted. It seems now, Russia is growing increasingly capable with the power of the people.

Read the article here

Japanese-Russian Relations

I thought this a fascinating article in the Moscow Times by the former defense minister of Japan, Yuriko Koike on the topic of the Russian occupied Chishima Islands. On the whole I doubt that the Russian government will give the islands back or consider such a thing lightly or any time in the future. But it is interesting to note that the issue is still in the minds of the Japanese. As Asia heats up over the next decades, this issue may grow in its significance.

http://www.themoscowtimes.com/opinion/article/russias-lost-opportunity-with-japan/410824.html

Russia agrees on Sanctions for Iran?

Calling Iran's nuclear stance "irresponsible, Russia's president said Iran's leadership needs to heed an international community now in agreement on sanctions against that country, a Russian state news agency reported.

"Nobody wants sanctions," Russian President Dmitry Medvedev told reporters on Saturday during a visit to Germany, where he met with Chancellor Angela Merkel. "But in some cases, it is necessary to agree on them."

More here...

My comments: There's been speculation as to whether the Obama admin has come to some sort of agreement with Russia regarding western expansion in Eastern Europe (Namely Ukraine) in exchange for support for a tougher stance on Iran. Russia's new position is certainly a change from their previous talk, indicating there was some sort of deal/arrangement struck.

Russian supported rebellion in Kyrgyzstan

"Kyrgyzstan’s self-proclaimed new leadership said on Thursday that Russia had helped to oust President Kurmanbek Bakiyev, and that they aimed to close a U.S. airbase that has irritated Moscow.

Their comments set Wednesday’s overthrow of Mr. Bakiyev, who fled the capital Bishkek as crowds stormed government buildings, firmly in the context of superpower rivalry in Central Asia."

More here...

My Comments: Take a look at the map and notice Kyrgyzstan's proximity to the Afghanistan. It's no wonder the US might lure the small nation into its sphere of influence with promises of aid and support in exchange for a small air base for use in operations in Afghanistan.

But lets zoom out for a second.

Kyrgyzstan is also within very close proximity to Russia, a world power and was a former Soviet Republic of the Soviet Union. In placing an air base in Kyrgyzstan the US under the Bush II administration made a threatening move to Russian security, and now Russia is using its growing influence, and a weakened US influence in the region, to claim the territory back.

However, it should be noted that the air base was a transit base, as opposed to a base supporting war aircraft or housing troops and it was primarily used to pour men into Afghanistan. Furthermore, the Obama administration failed to negotiate new terms for the base and it was scheduled for closing in 2009. Apparently, negotiations had been ongoing since 2007.

Russia is on the rise again to secure it's borders. With a Moscow led Economic Union in the works for 2012, including Kazakhstan as a keystone member, Kyrgyzstan's neighbor, and the Obama administration's "reset" of relations with Russia, its no wonder Putin is seeking to re-establish Russian dominance in its former Soviet Republics.