rssRussian President Medvedev on START and … Health Care
Friday, March 26, 2010 at 3:34 pm
- 8 Comments
So, between health care reform and the New START nuclear reduction treaty with Russia, this is kind of a big week for President Obama. And you know who agrees? Russian President Dmitri Medvedev.
Apparently, when Obama and Medvedev put the finishing touches on the long-negotiated accord over the phone this morning, Medvedev started the call by congratulating Obama on his health care victory. That’s a far cry from saying health care was in any sense a key to unlocking the talks, since all of the substance of this treaty was decided long before Congress finally passed the health care bill.
But the interpersonal relationship between the two presidents apparently was key to getting the most far-reaching nuclear reduction treaty in two decades. Obama and Medvedev had 14 talks about New START and related issues since Obama came into office, and this morning, Medvedev acknowledged the need for the two of them to get down into the weeds on verification mechanisms and what counts as “parity” between land-based missile systems (the bulk of Russia’s nuclear delivery capability) and submarines (the strongest leg of the U.S. nuclear-delivery “triad”) and so forth.
“If you want to get something done right,” Medvedev told Obama in English, apparently having practiced the proverb, “do it yourself.”
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8 Comments
Pingback posted March 26, 2010 @ 5:00 pm
[...] Russian President Medvedev on START and … Health Care - The Washington Independent [...]
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[...] Russian President Medvedev on START and … Health Care - The Washington Independent [...]
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[...] Russian President Medvedev on START and … Health Care - The Washington Independent [...]
Pingback posted March 26, 2010 @ 8:22 pm
[...] Russian President Medvedev on START and … Health Care - The Washington Independent [...]
Pingback posted March 26, 2010 @ 9:52 pm
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by attackerman and TMC Member Feed, WashIndependent. WashIndependent said: Russian President Medvedev on START and … Health Care http://bit.ly/d3fhBj [...]
Pingback posted March 27, 2010 @ 9:33 am
[...] Russian President Medvedev on START and … Health Care - The Washington Independent [...]
Pingback posted March 29, 2010 @ 6:35 am
[...] apparently President Medvedev made a flattering display of congratulating President Obama on the new…before getting to the substance of finalizing the details on New START during their morning phone call. To be very clear: all the substance of the treaty was long in the can before the health-care vote. Every single structural argument for New START — the long-term relationship with America is in the Russian interest; any arms-reduction treaty would be better than one negotiated right before the fall of the Soviet Union; but really one should be negotiated even though START lapsed because it shows the U.S. and the Russians can do Big Things together — matters much more. But Medvedev mentioned it, and then he told Obama, in English, “If you want to get something done right, do it yourself.” [...]
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