Carnegie Moscow Center
Despite the Kremlin's need for domestic and international legitimacy, there was widespread irregularity and fraud in Russia's recent presidential elections.
Vladimir Putin faces the question of whether to crack down on the still-evolving protest movement or to make concessions to a group who may never trust him.
Putin's return to the Kremlin may be good news for Dmitri Medvedev and Russia's oligarchs, but the middle class, especially the younger generation, is less optimistic about his re-election and the country's future.
While fraud was less prevalent in the March 4 Russian presidential election, abuses still occurred.
Western governments have the opportunity to demonstrate to the Russian elite that its ability to prosper in the West depends on its behavior inside Russia itself.
Following the Duma election in December, the political situation in Russia changed fundamentally. Social activity has sharply increased, and the new Russian middle class has awakened.
As China's power continues to grow, Russians need to rediscover themselves as a Euro-Pacific nation and strengthen ties to East Asia in order to avoid becoming Beijing's junior partner.
Vladimir Putin is expected to win Russia's presidential election on March 4, but growing popular alienation is likely to erode his power.
Russia and China are suspicious of multilateral institutions created by the West and hostile to anything that could justify external intervention in a sovereign state’s affairs, but both are learning to use international forums to their advantage.
It is in both Moscow and Washington’s interests to find realistic ways to improve bilateral strategic relations.