Speaking at a webinar sponsored by the MIT Center for International Studies, Andrey Kortunov, Director General of the Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC) said that the current view from the Kremlin is that productive relations with Russia is not on the priority list of the Biden administration; and therefore, expectations in Russia for any progress are low. He was speaking at the MIT Starr Forum: “Advice for President Biden: Dealing with Putin’s Russia,” April 12th online event, along with Georgetown University’s Prof. Angela Stent, director of their Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies.
Kortunov said that he would not present his own views, but those he understood to be the Kremlin’s: The ball is in the West’s court. Russia has offered many proposals for dialogue, including the UN Permanent 5 format, discussions on cybersecurity, etc., and the U.S. has not been receptive either under Presidents Trump or Biden. Ridiculous accusations have been thrown against Russia, again and again, with no credible evidence presented. For instance, Biden accused Russia of having paid bounties to the Taliban to kill American soldiers. Clearly, relations with Russia is not on top of Biden’s “priority list,” being surpassed by COVID, climate change, and China — and this is not expected to change anytime soon. Consequently, the U.S. is not at the top of Russia’s priority list either — therefore, let’s see how the dust settles in the new U.S. administration. What is needed is a change of the political support in the U.S. for productive relations with Russia. Biden is not expected to be a strong President. Look back to the broad support domestically enjoyed by President Roosevelt, and by President Reagan, specifically in their collaborations with the Soviet Union. By contrast, Russia sees in the U.S., today, “a divided country.” Kortunov said, “The fragility of the U.S. political system creates a serious obstacle to any progress.”
