Mr. President, my dear friend-
I'm looking at aligning myself with Sec Pompeo on the global stage so I can get out there to exercise my global reach and do the impossible like I mentioned to our President yesterday. I believe he's the best President yet handling the economy and wanting to bring my powerhouse assist to the table.
Meeting you is first on my agenda on the national stage,
"a new, three-way deal on nuclear arms that would include China"
I have not yet seen realistic discussions of this.
First, China never did a massive expansion of nuclear weapons in the way done in the nuclear arms race between the US and Russia. It instead aimed at a minimum force needed to deter. It did not waste money on more.
Therefore, China is not going to reduce below its minimum needs to deter. All that could be negotiated is some assurance that they won't in the future do a large expansion of the sort done by the US and Russia.
Furthermore, China uses these shorter range ballistic missiles for other than nuclear purposes. It uses them to supplement its air forces for conventional warfare. This is a recognition that its air forces alone could not do well enough. Conventional missiles are less efficient than aircraft, but much more efficient than losing the air battle altogether.
We cannot expect China to disarm its conventional forces in the guise of limiting nuclear forces. Any negotiation would need to accommodate that, which would be very difficult since warheads are harder to identify than launch vehicles and sites and missiles themselves.
This could be done. It should be done, since Russia is not going to make itself vulnerable to China. However, it can only be done if we are realistic about China's situation, which is not just the same as our own.
2
Beginning with the disastrous Bush/Cheney/Rumsfeld adventure in Iraq, US overreaching has demonstrated the limits of its power—or at any rate, its capability—and the decline of the post-WWII hegemon. (‘Doesn’t help that the US government is awash in red ink.) Now that the country is led by a genuinely incompetent person, Russia, China and Iran see the historic opportunity to displace US influence. That ‘high-five’ between Putin and Saudi’s MBS said it all.
As a previous poster said with elegant sarcasm, I’m sure these discussions will prove very fruitful.
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@mtnlion -- It also demonstrated the rogue power of the US as hegemon, reason to fear it, to confront it, and to be prepared to fight it.
The US made a lot of problems for itself while it was losing those wars.
4
Will anyone on the US side be taking notes this time? If so maybe the Russians will share it with the US press so the public will be informed on what was said.
1
You forgot the most important aspect, insuring Trumps 2020 victory, unless of course the democratic nominee is even weaker than Trump.
2
Putin does not want the US in Venezuela as Putin has his own plans there. So, Bolton is going to be disappointed.
Iran is Russia’s ally in the Middle East. Will see if Putin carries more sway than the Saudis here.
As for the Americans blustering about on the world stage? Just noise, loose trigger fingers and guns.
1
@Chickpea -- Putin is not likely so foolish as to have plans for Venezuela. More likely he'd like to trade, for things he does want in his "near abroad." Monroe Doctrine for the goose is good for the gander.
This sounds more like a meeting to slice up a few pies, and agree on who gets the larger slices. Right now, Putin is in the driver's seat and Pompeo is only offering suggestions (if anything) on which routes to take.
1
We are at war with Russia, they did what they could to prepare the way for a divided America by stealing our data so they could cyber-install a know-nothing President. We need a new President who can fight Putin and if need be, put the first Marine Division in Ukraine, not in Iran.
But then, Trump is not at war with Putin, they are great friends. Hard to call that anything but a traitorous relationship.
Hugh Massengill, Eugene Oregon
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@Hugh MassengillI -- If so, we declared that "war" and attacked first. If we want the war to stop, we'll have to offer to stop ourselves. That would mean places like Ukraine and any other Color Revolution designs in the State Dept.
2
Imagine having to sit down and talk with either of these men.
I’m sure their discussions will prove very fruitful.
4
We are in the hands of a two bit Tea Party hack doing international relations and rallying for a proxy war. The greatest security threat we face is the trio of Trump, Pompeo and Bolton. Make that a quartet Kushner is just as dangerous
16
Pompeo is really Trump's Real Estate broker- everything east of the Mississippi will get sold off to Putin and Russia- everything west of the Mississippi to Xi Jinping
That's Trump's big plan, to make trillions off of us and it is why he cares not a whit about the stock market.
Trump is not our President, and not our boss, he owns us, or is making a sporting effort of it.
America, face it, he regards himself as your owner.
Though some like it, and think they're making America great again, they are making Trump filthy rich again.
I say, make America free again. Make America a land of the free again
9
The Russians must think us so stupid with our system of new Secretary of States every 4 years or less. Putin, who's been in control for about 20 years, gets to meet with a neophyte playing Secretary of State to discuss the big issues of the day. It's like the Yankees playing a Little League team.
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Planning wars with the Russians to try to ensure that Trump gets re-elected as a war president. If this isn’t collusion, what is?
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We are witnessing the death of the Monroe Doctrine and the handover of Venezuela to a Russian controlled military Junta.
3
@Truth Is True -- More likely it is a claim by Russia for its own version of a Monroe Doctrine, "ours for yours." The US wants it both ways.
For now, Pompeo is a lightweight with no authority to resolve anything. He could however bluster and make things worse. Probably he will. That's what he's done everywhere he touches events.
1
Foreign policy 101
How do you improve relations with other countries?
A) go to war against them
B) embargo trade with them
C) treat them with hostility
D) make trade and military treaties with them
5
Have we forgotten the Americans and Russians who have been killed fighting Communism during the cold war? Have we forgotten the generation who fought World War II to create the greatest era of world peace with our European allies? Have we forgotten a generation of Republicans who along with Ronald Reagan used to say "Better dead than Red?"
It's interesting what a little election interference will buy. But what is frightening is how much more sophisticated Putin is compared with the Mr. Twitter. I have lived to see the beginning of the end of country I have loved all my life.
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@Henry Crawford
And why fighting Communism is relevant to this issue?
3
@Henry Crawford Yes indeed so very sad to see this great country beeing destroyed by Trump, Bolton Pompeo and their ilk. It seems these guys never learn. Tompkin Bay? Never heard of it.
6
Pompeo wants to “stabilize” our relationship with Russia?? Really?
Aren’t we currently under cyber attack by them every day?
Russia just looks at this as an opportunity to deny and deflect everything.
Can’t wait to see RT’s spin!
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@Dorothy -- "Aren’t we currently under cyber attack by them every day?"
We did them first, as for example on Iran and the Russian 2012 election, and we keep doing them.
If we want to stop them inbound, we'd have to stop sending them outbound. That is a trade we should make, but first we need to admit it.
No, we as Americans should fight those who are against us rather than be their apologists. I can't understand people who criticize the US at every opportunity but excuse all Russian aggression, unless they work for the FSB.
1
Secretary Pompeo believes in a literal end of the world as we know it with a fiery apocalypse. He of course would be “raptured.” Do we want this man negotiating our foreign policy?
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@Sharon -- It is some small comfort to know that by his own terms, he certainly would be on the wrong end of the Rapture. He can no doubt describe all the things required of a good person to get the favor of his God, but he can't really claim to do or have done any of them.
I hope humanity survives until a rational and democratic US Administration gets elected.
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“We want the Cubans out, we want the Iranians out, Russia’s military out,” Mr. Pompeo told reporters in Finland.
Americans and the rest of the world want Trump out.
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@Bob Woods: Bravo, well stated!
3
“We want the Cubans out, we want the Iranians out, Russia’s military out,” Mr. Pompeo told reporters in Finland. “We started to talk about how our interests might be able to find a way forward. I don’t know that we’ll get to the right place, but we’ll have further conversations.”
Such arrogance. What gives the United States the right to tell Venezuela which countries to welcome?
Russia might well reply, "We want American troops out of Poland."
Pompeo is on a fool's errand. Nothing will come of his trip.
26
We are witnessing a replay of Iraq mixed with the Gulf of Tonkin resolution where "hawks" who shirked their own military service beat the drum for war that will involve millions of other people, including children. Meanwhile, we have a supine Congress that allows such catastrophe to unfold unchecked.
Neither the nation nor the world is yet free of incalculable costs of the wholely misbegotten Iraq war. Conflict in Afghanistan continues to drain human and fiscal treasure. Yet, here we go again, led by cowards who drum up lies and provocations to plunge us into another lethal war of choice. This is worse than misbegotten; it is evil.
We never learn, even from the bitter lessons of barely more than one decade ago while our heel-spur heroes march us blindly toward another disaster based upon self-serving lies.
34
Proxy wars.
We all know how they end, and who gets hurt.
Are Americans going to allow this to happen again?
8
Create a crisis and start a war to take attention from this corrupt president. Wag the dog!
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“Don’t worry, Vlad, we’ll make sure our allies have no choice but to buy their oil from you. While I’m here can I buy more shares?”
10
Pompeo goes into these meetings with everyone in the room fully recognizing that whatever productive conversation might be had will be undercut by Trump shortly thereafter. Based on that understanding, what progress can possibly be achieved.
20
All I can say is, "Here we go again!".
Bibi, jared, bolton and trump believe that Iran is a military pushover. The Iranians with Russian/Chinese(?) help have armed themselves with the most modern anti ship missiles. They will target our aircraft carriers. When they sink one or two, trump will push the military to go nuclear. Then who knows what will happen.
The Russians and Chinese aren't just going to just sit on their hands. One of their options is to unleash kim jung-un on South Korea. They have many options for which America and Israel will pay dearly!
17
@JAB Netanjahu, another sleazy individual, keeps egging Trump on. I think what will happen is that the US will end up in a nuclear war. Unfortunately too many people in the US are ill informed and can not and will not fathom the consequences of a nuclear war. I believe most people think well the fallout from a nuclear war will NOT affect us. Got news for them nuclear fallout knows NO boundaries or borders.
5
What could go wrong when you have Norm, from Cheers, negotiating international diplomacy on your behalf?
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@Steve Griffith. I always thought that that it was Tony Soprano representing the USA. I would prefer Norm!
13
Mike, please click your heels together three times and return to Kansas.
The US would be better off without anyone at the helm of the State Department until we can return to an actual and deliberate foreign policy, not one which dances around Bolton’s war fantasies and Trump’s base pandering xenophobia and despot crushes.
39
During the last Administration, the United States concluded that Russia had been in violation of the treaty and which adds to the many issues our country is facing!
Russo-Georgian War of 2008, was a prelude of things to come and which adds to the many issues our country is facing!
2013 the Ukraine crisis began and Russia annexed Crimea by 2014 - which just adds to the many issues our country is facing!
2016, UNCLOS ruled against China's South China Sea territorial claims - which China rejected... and which just adds to the many issues our country is facing!
2006 - 2011 one of the regions most intense/severe droughts contributed to the Syrian crisis resulting in civil war... despite many red lines being proclaimed by our country... the atrocities continued and resulting aftermath is still adding to the many issues our country is facing!
Climate Change, Energy, Israel, Population Explosion, Food Shortages, Commercial Fisheries Collapse - Name the Crises!
Former Presidents Bush and Obama didn't deal with these issues effectively. Trump hasn't been dealing with these issues effectively. Ocasio-Cortez, Biden or Sanders wouldn't fare any better. Based on past events, Rep. Omar has demonstrated she wouldn't deal with these issues diplomatically. Republicans Kasich and Hogan are like past and current politicians - clueless!
So my question is... who is the magical being that we can elect to solve all these problems?
Who would the NYT fall in love with?
I want to know!
6
@The Critic -- Georgia would not have happened if our neocons hadn't egged on the Georgians to attack Russia.
Ukraine wouldn't have happened if we hadn't done the color revolution there a year before the scheduled election -- just couldn't wait, and feared perhaps we'd lose.
The US made these problems, every bit as much as anything Russia did. It can fix them too, but only by first being honest with itself.
Mike Pompeo is going to Russia crawling and begging on his knees.
Will Pompeo be thanking Vladimir Putin for his assistance in getting Donald Trump elected President of the United States in 2016?
Will Pompeo be asking Putin for more effective meaningful hacking and meddling help on behalf of Trump in 2020?
Will Pompeo be looking for further orders from Moscow on what Trump can do in order to make Russia great again at the expense of Europe, the European Union, the Eurozone, NATO, Japan, TPP, Canada, Mexico, the Paris Accords, JCPOI, South Korea and America's allies?
Will Pompeo be working on making Trump Tower Moscow and Trump Golf Resort Course Sochi reality?
23
Mostly they’ll discuss the price oil, and how to boost its price by maintaining the instability in the Middle East.
16
Pompeo is taking is first "diplomatic trip" to Russia - that's what we're calling his trip, when the South China Morning Post reports today that "the Kremlin is now striving to assert itself as an indispensable destination for Beijing amid the trade war with Washington" - calling Trump's trade conflict a veritable "blessing in disguise for Russia’s quest to assert itself as a more reliable, even indispensable, partner" to China.
That's no "diplomatic trip". Pompeo is going to hold the timer, and a post-race shot of vodka, for Putin's victory lap.
12
It is difficult to imagine the likes of Trump, Pompeo, Bolton, who by their demands for the rest of the world to take a knee to US imperialism have brought humanity to the point of extinction.
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I don't trust Putin.
Just like I don't trust Trump, Pompeo, and Bolton.
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@Meadowlark Lemmy -- Putin is not on our side, but he and Lavrov are competent. The problem is on our side.
3
Putin is competent at stealing billions from his people and rigging elections. He is competent at convincing Americans and other Westerners to abandon their loyalty to their traditional allies and instead embrace corrupt nationalism so that he can steal land from all of his neighbors without repercussion. Putin is competently occupying the sovereign territory of several other countries right now.