Kremlin aide: Russias centuries-long romance with West over

[brooklynite]

Source: AP News

MOSCOW (AP) — President Vladimir Putin’s adviser says Russia has abandoned its centuries-long aspirations of integrating into the West and is bracing for a new era of “geopolitical loneliness.”

Vladislav Surkov wrote in an article for Russia in Global Affairs magazine released Monday that “Russia’s epic journey toward the West” is over, marking an end to its “vain attempts to become part of Western civilization” spanning four centuries.

Russia-West ties have slid to post-Cold War lows over the Ukrainian crisis, the war in Syria and other issues, most recently the poisoning of an ex-Russian spy in Britain that triggered an unprecedented diplomatic war.

Surkov, a longtime Putin aide who currently works as the presidential adviser on Ukraine, said “loneliness doesn’t mean complete isolation,” but added that its openness will be limited.

Read more: https://www.apnews.com/09299ea93f0a436eb2597c8743132204

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Apparently not a PET SHOP BOYS fan?

[greymattermom]

1. So no

Trump hotel deal, right?

[shraby]

2. Russia doesn't want to integrate, it wants to dominate.

They way they have always interacted with other countries is by domination until they got discombobulated in the 1980s. Since they got over the shock of that, they have been trying to gain back some of their losses little by little. Goal is to not only retrieve the countries they lost back under their thumb, but to add any and all other ones they can.

Including but not limited to the United States, which they have made huge strides toward that goal. The ultimate goal is world domination.

[forgotmylogin]

21. Centuries? What?

Are they trying to rewrite history? I was alive in the 1980s and there was this thing called the Cold War...that was not very "romantic" at all.

[marble falls]

3. "Centuries"?.....

I think this is a WWE move on Russia's part in 'colussion' with cheetolini.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

12. Yes, CENTURIES. France and Russia have had a centuries long fascination with each other.

Composers, artists, philosophers, scientists, many others going both ways.

Not hard to find in the history of the two countries.

[marble falls]

16. And its been all romance since 1812??

[Bernardo de La Paz]

17. No. Neither the Russians nor the OP indulges in binary thinking. I suggest you avoid it too.

Of course it has not been ALL romance since 1812 or before.

[JI7]

23. when it comes to arts and sciences it's still there just like during the cold war.

it's not the arts that is in dispute.

[marble falls]

4. So, are we getting the pee video or not???

[BigmanPigman]

5. Fuck off Putin...greedy murderer.

[Coventina]

6. Um, when were they "in love" with the west, exactly?

[MosheFeingold]

9. Love

In the same sense an abusive spouse?

I love you much, I hit you! Now where's my vodka?

[unc70]

14. Starting with Peter the Great, early 1700s

Has been more or less true for three hundred years.

As with too many love affairs, Russia often feels like the spurned lover.

[Xolodno]

19. What another poster stated...

...Since Tsar Peter the Great.

Also they view history in terms of centuries whereas we view it in decades. As far as they are concerned, they "saved" Europe from Napoleon Bonaparte and Adolf Hitler....and haven't gotten any thanks from it, from their point of view.

The Vatican is a separate country in Rome, but their attempts to restore Constantinople have been consistently rebuffed. Another sore point with them.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, they assumed, they were part of the European "Club". Instead Yeltsin's demand to join NATO was ignored, while former Warsaw PACT nations where joining at a rapid pace.

The break up of Yugoslavia, a long time frenemy, didn't sit well with them either.

Then came the attempt to include former Soviet Republics...whose borders were arbitrarily drawn under the Soviet Union. After the collapse, those borders should have been re-evaluated and returned closer to the original before they were absorbed into the empire. However, someone, somewhere thought it was better to keep them as is since it took a chunk out of the Russia Republic and put them at a disadvantage. That hasn't worked out so well, has it?

Side note, I've advocated a return of the Tatar nation....Its been met with muted response.

What this signals is, they are pivoting economically to Asia, that is, China, India, etc. I wouldn't be surprised in the future they finally conclude a peace treaty with Japan and reach an agreement on the disputed islands. But only when its mutually beneficial for both Japan and Russia.

[pecosbob]

7. Good thing, that

since you can't get visas to travel to the West any longer...maybe Comrade Donald can help you start up some Chuck E. Cheese franchises in over there in Siberistan. Enjoy your vacations in beautiful Sochi. Please pay a visit if you're in the neighborhood...we'll hook you up with a nice spiffy new orange jumpsuit.

[skypilot]

8. "geopolitical loneliness"

I know it's bullshit but still.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

13. Yeah. Really. Won't last. Russia likes its buffer but that's as far away as it wants to get. . . nt

[Iliyah]

10. t-rump supporters probably don't know about the history of USA & Russia

(higher education) doesn't appear to be in their radar, but Russia and the USA have never been besties.

[Chakaconcarne]

11. In the context of all things Russia and Trump....

I don't understand what is happening or what this article means.... or if it's even real.

Are they involved in our politics to disrupt or to help Trump for something in return?

[woundedkarma]

15. Who will you sell your oil to now Putin?

It will be interesting if we start seeing deals between Rosnef and China, Japan or someone else. There's nobody else to sell the oil to.

Are they making deals with China? That makes the most sense. China and USA have a trade war.. where will China turn? Perhaps Russia. Time will tell...

Ahaha don't have to wait for time... I just did some quick research. There is a $9 billion deal in the works for a Chinese energy company to buy 14% of Rosneft. So there you go.

[DetlefK]

18. Bullshit. Russia never tried to come closer to the West.

Russia always saw itself as the successor of the Byzantine Empire, the eastern remnant of the Roman Empire.

Later, Russia was connected to Europe only via noble marriages. (There was this little thing called Kingdom Poland inbetween Russia and western Europe.)

It was an initiative of Empress Katarina the Great (a prussian princess!) that brought the russian judicial system from medieval to contemporary standards.

Okay, then came an era when Russia was close to the West. And that era ended with the death of the last Czar and the Bolshevik Revolution.
After Lenin's death, Trotsky wanted to spread Communism abroad bottom-up via grassroots-movements and Stalin wanted an authoritarian top-down-approach. And with Stalin winning the power-struggle, again there was no good relations with the West.

And after the Cold War, Russia wanted to keep NATO away from its borders, because this would creep on Russia's geopolitical sphere of influence. And again no friendliness.

Then came Putin and he made clear pretty fast that he doesn't like troublesome western ideas like freedom of the press.

IN FACT Russia began in the 2000s trying to build their own version of the EU with former soviet countries.





So, except for maybe the years 1700 to 1900, when did Russia try to become a part of the West?

[moondust]

20. Pariah state goes rogue.

It's too bad they couldn't have found somebody new to lead them out of totalitarianism rather than a holdover kleptocrat from the old order.

[JI7]

22. i thought it ended with the cold war

[Nitram]

24. LOL, that "loneliness" is typical Russian masochistic romanticism.

It blatantly contradicts Russia's efforts to build pipelines and establish ties with allies abroad.