Carnegie Moscow Center
President Medvedev’s modernization program seems more like another attempt to freshen up Russia’s democratic façade while maintaining the status quo, which could potentially worsen the country’s stagnation and perhaps make it irreversible.
President Obama’s visit to Moscow on July 6-8 is likely to have more influence on world politics than most regular state visits. The tone for U.S. policy towards Russia will be set depending on who he meets with and the rhetoric he uses during this trip.
If the Obama administration believes U.S. relations with Russia's authoritarian regime can be reduced to the false dichotomy of isolation or cooperation, its efforts to improve relations with Moscow will lead to more mutual disappointment.