According to the New York Times, Obama sent a secret letter to Russia’s president last month suggesting that he would back off deploying a new missile defense system in Eastern Europe if Moscow would help stop Iran from developing long-range weapons.
A couple of points to consider....
- We need to take control of this narrative from the get-go... Meaning - don't let the party of Rush turn this into a "Obama is negotiating with our sworn enemies in secret" scandal. Because if you actually read the article and are honest/smart, this is actually a good thing.
The letter to President Dmitri A. Medvedev was hand-delivered in Moscow by top administration officials three weeks ago. It said the United States would not need to proceed with the interceptor system, which has been vehemently opposed by Russia since it was proposed by the Bush administration, if Iran halted any efforts to build nuclear warheads and ballistic missiles.
The officials who described the contents of the message requested anonymity because it has not been made public. While they said it did not offer a direct quid pro quo, the letter was intended to give Moscow an incentive to join the United States in a common front against Iran. Russia’s military, diplomatic and commercial ties to Tehran give it some influence there, but it has often resisted Washington’s hard line against Iran.
"It’s almost saying to them, put up or shut up," said a senior administration official. "It’s not that the Russians get to say, ‘We’ll try and therefore you have to suspend.’ It says the threat has to go away."
There are a couple of positives about this.
One, we don't escalate another potential cold war with the Russians.
Two, we get to have some leverage on Iran regarding nuclear missiles. Wasn't that the whole point?
- Who in the hell are these American officials who leaked some of the details of this secret letter? Are these Bushies trying to sabotage an attempt by Obama to get something going that is actually positive when it comes to foreign policy? Someone needs to lose their job. Shameful.
Look - Obama was elected because he promised a different way of approaching crises like these. This is a good idea. He is putting the ball in the Russians' court and showing that he is willing to work together for a common cause (sound familiar?).
Now if the Russians decide to act like the GOP and just disagree to disagree, then Obama has the political capital to proceed with the shield if he chooses.
So let's help make sure that this story is framed the correct way from the start, and that this doesn't turn into a circus where the GOP decides to make up crap like "the stimulus bill gives billions of dollars to field mice!"