Russia ~ Friend or Foe?

When you hear “Russia” you automatically think Cold War, nuclear weapons, and Communism.  However, are these really relevant anymore or has Russia changed its mindset?  Let’s take a look behind the Iron Curtain and see what Russia’s behavior has been on different issues.

Iran’s Nuclear Program:

Just about any major world superpower has a stance on the Iranian nuclear program, so let’s look at Russia’s.  So far the Obama administration has been unable to get Russia to budge on the issue.  Russia still drags their feet on Iranian sanctions.  Inaction is action and we can see by this that Russia does not want to turn its back on its friend.  However, this goes much deeper than this.  If you read Arms Deal you would realize that Russia is not only dragging its feet, but is kicking dirt in our eyes.  In 2007 Russia tried to sell anti-aircraft missiles to Iran to help them protect their nuclear program.  This action shows that not only is Russia not cooperating, but heading in an entirely different direction.

The People’s Mindset:

After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 the new nation of Russia took form with a little bit of western help.  Today they call themselves a “Democracy”, but as we all know Russia has one of the most corrupt governments in the world.  Communism relies upon communal corruption to stay alive.  The government lives off of the greed that drives it.  Although they can call themselves a democracy all they want, the fact still remains that they base themselves off of communism.  However, it goes much further than that.  Not only is the government turning communist, but the people are too.  We need to think about this for a second.  The people of Russia have lived in generations of Communism, it’s all they know.  We see the same with the former Soviet countries.  If it were not for western intervention Poland, Latvia, Ukraine, Czech Republic and others would all turn completely communist.  Communism is embedded in the people’s mindset, and without generations of democracy they will never change.

Russia’s Rejection of NATO:

Since the creation of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) Russia has shown bitter resentment towards the group.  In all of NATO’s attempts to cooperate with Russia they have been turned down cold.  Russia believes NATO is too expansionistic.  In February of 2010 Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lovrov publically accused NATO of global ambitions and claimed they violate the U.N Charter. 

United States Trade:

The lack of substantial U.S – Russian trade has not helped relations much either.  Currently the largest export we have to Russia is poultry…I think that says enough.  But, with disagreements as large as the previous ones trade becomes a large factor.  If we do not have reasons to work things out (loss of trade) then things just don’t get done.  Trade equals more money and more money equals incentive to fix disagreements.  As long as trade remains the same with Russia, all of our “Reset” relation attempts will end in utter failure.