(Photo: Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)
One way of understanding the 2009-2014 Obama administration policy of “reset” with Vladimir Putin’s Russia is to recall two iconic incidents.
The first was the 2009 “reset.”
Then-newly appointed Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced that she would pursue a “reset” détente with Russia. America would relax the prior Bush administration’s mild ostracism of Russia after its 2008 invasion of Georgia and softly start anew.
The second was President Barack Obama’s hot mic moment in March 2012 in Seoul, South Korea. Obama got caught asking Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to reassure Vladimir Putin.
Or as Obama put it: “On all these issues, but particularly missile defense, this, this can be solved, but it’s important for him to give me space. … This is my last election. After my election, I have more flexibility.”
Both Obama and Putin apparently got their quid pro quo wishes.
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