Vladimir Putin Takes Back the Reins
The Obama Administration's "reset" of U.S. relations with Russia sputtered and died in 2011, with the erstwhile Cold War rivals squabbling over everything from NATO's missile defenses, to how to tackle Iran's nuclear program. Expect the chill to deepen: Vladimir Putin, Russia's prime minister and de facto autocrat, now seems poised to reclaim the presidency he relinquished to protege Dmitri Medvedev in 2008. Washington had hoped to make headway by ignoring Putin and dealing primarily with Medvedev, but the president's decision to step aside for his patron (who was constitutionally required to take a four-year break from the presidency) underscored the fact that he had simply been keeping Putin's seat warm. The former KGB man, meanwhile, burnished his tough-guy image by writing a book on judo, and allowing himself to be photographed shirtless on horseback, welding and shooting a Siberian tiger with a dart. Putin's more assertive nationalist posture poses challenge for Western governments, but a recent poll found his domestic approval rating having dipped to 61% and his United Russia party took losses in recent parliamentary elections, winning only 53% of the seats, down from the 70% they previously held. That could portend a rougher ride back to power than Putin had anticipated.