June 2, 2006
PUTIN THE OBSTREPEROUS?....Has Vladimir Putin been "constructive diplomacy personified" when it comes to dealing with Iran? I'm not sure, but Nadezhda thinks so.
—Kevin Drum 11:37 AM
Permalink
| Trackbacks
| Comments (14)
"Is ... been" ?
Posted by: Will Guthrie on June 2, 2006 at 11:40 AM | PERMALINK
OK. "Is...been"'s now a has been.
Posted by: Will Guthrie on June 2, 2006 at 11:43 AM | PERMALINK
Putin runs the sort of "Democracy" that Bush aspires to. And he has nice eyes.
Posted by: craigie on June 2, 2006 at 12:07 PM | PERMALINK
From the link:
The Russians have been constructive diplomacy personified. They've helped the Europeans and, indirectly, the rational folks in the Bush Admin maneuver through the minefield that the US hardliners have constructed.
Classic. Naturally, the current crisis with Iran obtaining nukes was caused by...... US hardliners! blame America first!
Posted by: American Hawk on June 2, 2006 at 12:23 PM | PERMALINK
Who knows what Putin did but I see that Rice just theaten Iran.
Rice Warns Iran It Doesn't Have Much Time
The United States warned Iran it will not have much time to respond once it is offered an international package of rewards to encourage it to suspend uranium enrichment, suggesting that the window could soon close and be replaced by penalties.
"It really needs to be within weeks," U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice told NBC's "Today" show, referring to the six-power package of perks or penalties aimed at halting Iran's enrichment activities.
Bush is ready to bomb Iran - so fill up your gas tanks because gasoline prices just went off the chart.
Did the Bush administration ever really hold talks with Iran or did it just get the UN to talk to Iran - and already, no talk needed, we're at bombing stage.
I wonder if Bush going to use those bunker busters (nukes)?
Posted by: Cheryl on June 2, 2006 at 12:30 PM | PERMALINK
oh and this part: Bush said he got a "positive response" in a telephone conversation Tuesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, adding, "We expect Russia to participate in the United Nations Security Council. We'll see whether or not they agree to do that."
Yeah, Bush knows Putin's soul real well (not).
Posted by: Cheryl on June 2, 2006 at 12:34 PM | PERMALINK
The good thing about the article: one gets to see the words "pusillanimous" and "obstreperous" in the same sentence.
Next, an analysis of George W. Bush by Elizabeth Bumiller that uses the word "coprophagous" to describe the President.
Posted by: Dicksknee on June 2, 2006 at 12:52 PM | PERMALINK
Classic. Naturally, the current crisis with Iran obtaining nukes was caused by...... US hardliners! blame America first!
Posted by: American Hawk
Well, just how did Iran get their nuclear technology, Chickenhawk? Could it possibly be from that Pakistani guy, AQ Kahn? You remember him, the guy that Musharaff investigated for a total of one day. And I'm sure you remember your hero, Dumbya's, praising Musharaff's "thorough" investigation. I guess Dumbya was surprised he took a whole day!
So maybe it wasn't the "hardliners'" fault, but they certainly did nothing to stop it.
BTW, which ports did that nuclear technology pass through to get to Iran? Hmmm, the name Dubai ring a bell, Chickenhawk? The same port masters your hero (Dumbya again) wanted to manage our ports! But he's so good with National Security!
Posted by: MeLoseBrain? on June 2, 2006 at 1:05 PM | PERMALINK
In some of my more cynical moments, I believe that the Iran confrontation is being driven by the Russians.
0 - Putin has been renationalizing oil companies like Yukos to make money to get IMF off Russia's back, as well as buying up downstream distribution companies, and renaming them as Lukoil. All in a quest to become an economic superpower based on oil.
1 - The US fears Iran.
2 - That fear raises rhetoric and world oil prices go up, making Russia richer.
3 - Russia sells anti-aircraft and anti-cruise-missile missiles to Iran, raising the profits of the Russian aerospace industry.
4 - The US makes more threats, raising the rhetoric and world oil prices. Russia wins again!
5 - goto 1
The bush administration is remarkably easy to manipulate and cajole by those pesky ferners. Just look at how Iran managed to fool America into winning the Iran-Iraq war permanently on behalf of the Iranians, and installing a pro-Iranian government in Iraq.
Only 2 more weeks until the next meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. When Iran is scheduled to become a full member. Both Russia and China are members of SCO and it looks like that organization will turn into some Common Market sort of organization.
Comrade wolf knows whom to eat, he eats without listening, and he's clearly not going to listen to anyone.
Putin knows that the US plans to invade and wipe out every non-friendly petroleum producer. And this speech by Putin is the start of the new arms race.
Posted by: Tangurena on June 2, 2006 at 1:10 PM | PERMALINK
Putin has been trying to reconstruct dictatorship in Russia. For that, I oppose him. But on Iran, he's mostly been right.
Putin has been extremely constructive on the Iran issue: he's the one who pushed the proposals that are most likely to either settle the crisis, or deny Iran any political cover. I'm talking about his proposals that Russia handle the uranium enrichment for Iran, so Iran can have reactors without risk of weapons proliferation.
Russia's threats to veto UN resolutions that resemble the one Bush used as cover for the Iraq war have made it more likely that we end up with a diplomatic solution, rather than a whole lot of dead people.
Posted by: Joe Buck on June 2, 2006 at 2:19 PM | PERMALINK