The American "Donkeys" Promise No Surprises for Russia

The U.S. Democratic Party has announced its program for the next four years. The plans of the “donkeys” were announced on Monday night in the city of Charlotte, North Carolina, during the party’s convention, at which President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden will become the official candidates in the presidential election.

Obama’s program entails the following:

“Moving forward, the president will work with Russia to achieve additional reductions in stockpiles and nuclear delivery vehicles, including tactical and non-deployed nuclear weapons. We will also work to ratify the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty and seek a new Fissile Material Cut-off Treaty that prohibits the production of fissile materials intended for use in nuclear weapons.

“We believe that the United States and Russia can cooperate on missile defense, but we have also made clear that we will move forward with our system, beginning with the steps we have taken to deploy it in Poland, Turkey and Romania.

“The president’s ‘reset’ policy toward Russia has produced significant cooperation… The administration will not put aside our differences but will raise them directly with the Russian government.”

Political analyst Boris Mezhuyev, an expert on the United States, commented that there is no reason to expect any surprises with regard to Obama’s foreign policy position.

“Obama’s position on Russia is not changing at all. I don’t think that he will experience any new impulses or ‘second winds.’ In this sense, the Democratic position is more realistic than that of the Republicans. The pole of realism has now clearly shifted toward Obama and the Democratic Party. One of the provisos of this realist program is that the U.S. must work together with Russia and solve mutual and immediate problems. Yes, there are disagreements when it comes to Syria, but the realists believe that disagreement is not always bad. It is sometimes necessary for someone oppose the U.S. They themselves want someone to hold them back.

“I don’t think anything will change with the victory of the Democrats. Interestingly, their plans are peaceful when it comes to Russia, although this is not electorally advantageous. It would be advantageous to bully Russia a bit. Nevertheless, the fact that Obama appears to be more relaxed and realistic in international relations is a plus. But he does have a lot of economic shortcomings. Obama still has a very vague economic position, as he blatantly reneges on his campaign promises. The U.S. has begun to experience stagnation and high unemployment.

“Obama’s policies are utterly quiet and predictable; at any rate, he does not threaten the common people with new wars or unnecessary conflicts. The Democratic Party’s strategists understand this perfectly and are not attempting to surpass Romney in the aggressiveness of their tone.”

Pavel Svyatenkov, a political analyst and publicist, expressed agreement with his colleague.

“For Obama, there is value in maintaining relations with Russia. The so-called ‘reset’ is one of Obama’s very few achievements in the sphere of foreign policy. Therefore, in light of the current elections, relations with Russia could become a subject of debate between Obama and Romney.

“Most likely, that which was voiced by the Democrats, a continuation of the policies Obama is currently conducting, will come to pass. It is obvious that in the case of reelection, Obama would not abandon these policies, at the very least not until today’s Middle East falls under Western control.

“But if Romney wins, anything could happen.”