What To Expect from Russia with Putin Once Again Unambiguously in Charge?

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In The Media

What To Expect from Russia with Putin Once Again Unambiguously in Charge?

Given that Vladimir Putin retained a great deal of power during the presidency of Dmitry Medvedev, there are unlikely to be any major changes in Russian strategy toward the United States.

By Matthew Rojansky

Published on Sep 28, 2011

Source: Voice of America

Speaking on Voice of America's On the Line, Carnegie’s Matthew Rojansky discussed the implications of Russian President Medvedev’s recent announcement that he will not run for re-election in 2012. His decision paves the way for Prime Minister Putin to return to the presidency, an office he held for eight years until 2008. “It has been clear that when Putin has been serving as Prime Minister under the President Medvedev, in actual fact, Putin has been calling a lot of the important shots,” Rojansky stated. “What that means in practice is that what we saw at least in part was a Putin presidency for the last 4 years.”

Rojansky suggested that although “there will not be a contradiction in terms of strategy in the U.S.–Russia relations, Obama has to start over and build a personal rapport with Putin.” Rojansky also warned that Russia needs to learn from the current situation in Western Europe and fix its state budget, especially its dependence on oil revenues.

About the Author

Matthew Rojansky

Former Deputy Director, Russia and Eurasia Program

Rojansky, formerly executive director of the Partnership for a Secure America, is an expert on U.S. and Russian national security and nuclear-weapon policies.

Recent Work

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An Opportunity for Ambition: Ukraine’s OSCE Chairmanship
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Presiding Over the OSCE: Challenges and Opportunities
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Political Reform Democracy Foreign Policy North America United States Caucasus Russia

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

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