Medvedev Sends President-Elect a Tough Message ( Russian President Derides U.S. Policy, ....)

MOSCOW -- Russian President Dmitry Medvedev issued a chilly reception to the incoming U.S. administration, threatening to station missiles deep inside Europe and lambasting the U.S. for "selfish" foreign-policy and economic blunders.

Reuters

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's address showed few signs of a hoped-for softening toward the West.

Mr. Medvedev also proposed extending the term of the Russian president to six years from four, a change that may benefit his predecessor and prime minister, Vladmir Putin, who may run for president again in 2012.

Without mentioning U.S. President-elect Barack Obama by name, Mr. Medvedev said he hoped the new administration in Washington will take steps to improve badly damaged U.S. ties with Russia. But he suggested it is up to Washington, not Moscow, to improve relations.

"We have no problem with the American people, no inborn anti-Americanism," he said.

Mr. Medvedev's speech, his first state-of-the-nation address since he became president in May, bore few signs of a hoped-for softening toward the West, or of the authoritarian political system established under Mr. Putin.

Germany's foreign ministry called Mr. Medvedev's plan to deploy missiles in response to U.S. plans for an antimissile system "a wrong signal at the wrong time."

The Kremlin has repeatedly called on Washington to abandon the planned missile system.

Unless pres. Bush can do something I think they probably timed this ‘signal’ about right. For them.

Too bad we have an incoming that doesn’t believe that the US is nobody’s *itch. We should probably call him ‘bendover Barry’.

I’m sure Obama thinks the fault is with the US, and he will comply with Russian wishes fully. That should diffuse things until the Russians want more, and Obama gives them more. People of Europe should be very afraid. When something happens, the US won’t be there to help.

The Europeans deserve everything they’ve got coming to them. I should know, I’m from there. They hated Bush, actually they’ve hated all of America for decades, and they were all rooting for Obama, so now they have got him. Eat it, Europe. You got what you wished for.

What will happen when Iran tests a nuclear weapon next February, how will Obama react? Diplomacy and weak UN sanctions have done nothing to date to stop the coming crisis, and the Europeans have no stomach to forcefully (very tough sanctions or the threat of force) confront Tehran. The One would probably claim that Tehran has assured him that they have no intention of attacking Israel or ever using these weapons for offensive purposes. I’m sure the mullahs will relay that the weapons are for defensive purposes only. Next I’m sure the messiah will urge more useless diplomacy in order to pressure Tehran into giving up it’s keys to the nuclear club, something I highly doubt the mullahs would ever do. After Iran tells Obama to stick it, you can bet that Syria, Egypt, Iraq and Saudi Arabia will institute or greatly accelerate their own research and development of nuclear weapons. Something they would never consider if we had consensus here at home and abroad to do what needs to be done.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.