Obama, Medvedev seek new era in US-Russia ties India
President Barack Obama and President Dmitry Medvedev will hit the restart button on U.S.-Russian ties by agreeing to begin talks on a new nuclear arms treaty when they meet for the first time on Wednesday.
But many other contentious issues cloud the outlook, from missile defence to Iran and NATO expansion, before the above warms up again.
Their meeting before a G20 summit in London will be an early test for Obama, who is making his debut on the world stage with his first major trip abroad since taking office in January.
His antecedent George W. Bush claimed a personal chemistry with former Russian President Vladimir Putin, although that did not stop several policy disputes and a Kremlin clampdown widely seen as rolling back popular reforms.
The two new presidents have both signalled a more pragmatic, business-like approach.
At least one major acquirement is expected from the London encounter: agreement to start talks on a new treaty limiting long-range nuclear missiles to replace a pact that expires this year. Expectations are low for much progress on other fronts.
"Nobody should expect a 'Bush heart-to-heart with Putin' kind of exposure," said Sarah Mendelson, a Russia expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. "These guys don't operate that way."
But many other contentious issues cloud the outlook, from missile defence to Iran and NATO expansion, before the above warms up again.
Their meeting before a G20 summit in London will be an early test for Obama, who is making his debut on the world stage with his first major trip abroad since taking office in January.
His antecedent George W. Bush claimed a personal chemistry with former Russian President Vladimir Putin, although that did not stop several policy disputes and a Kremlin clampdown widely seen as rolling back popular reforms.
The two new presidents have both signalled a more pragmatic, business-like approach.
At least one major acquirement is expected from the London encounter: agreement to start talks on a new treaty limiting long-range nuclear missiles to replace a pact that expires this year. Expectations are low for much progress on other fronts.
"Nobody should expect a 'Bush heart-to-heart with Putin' kind of exposure," said Sarah Mendelson, a Russia expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. "These guys don't operate that way."
