Perhaps the worst thing about President Obama’s failing economic policy is that it has distracted attention from his disastrous foreign policy, which might make the United States more vulnerable over the long-term.
Last week, Justice Department officials arrested ten Russian spies inside the United States. The spies had infiltrated suburbia and were living supposedly typical American lifestyles, even as they were secretly gathering sensitive information about U.S. activities.
The arrests came just days after a summit between President Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, which included a high-profile lunch trip to Ray’s Hell Burger in northern Virginia.
That summit was the latest event in a year-and-a-half long effort by the Obama administration to “reset” our relationship with the former Soviet Union.
After the spies were captured, the White House and the State Department moved aggressively to downplay any suggestion that the episode would have an affect on U.S.-Russian relations. State Department spokesman Phil Gordon even went so far as to say that it was not a surprise to discover Russian spies operating inside the U.S.
Gordon may indeed be right. During the Cold War, Russia maintained a sophisticated espionage operation inside the U.S., and we responded likewise with spies of our own in Russia. The fact that relics of these programs remain in operation makes sense, as relations between our two countries have grown tense in recent years.
However, Russia’s response to the incident was a surprise. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin called U.S. law enforcement “out of control.” Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov sarcastically told reporters that, “the choice of timing was particularly graceful,” when referencing the proximity of the event to Medvedev’s visit. The Foreign Ministry itself said, “We do not understand what prompted the U.S. Justice Department to make a public statement in the spirit of Cold War espionage.”
So to the Russians, it was our Justice Department, not their spies, that was making a statement of Cold War espionage.
While Moscow later backed away from some of these comments in an attempt to smooth over relations, we still must question the foreign policy wisdom of an administration that makes repeated overtures to another country after arresting 10 of its spies, even as that country ridicules our law enforcement authorities and blames us for the entire episode.
The Obama administration has sent the Russian government an unmistakable signal that good relations between our two countries is more important to us than it is to them. The Russians got the message, and have been exploiting it to their advantage.
Last year, for instance, the administration caved to Russian objections and cancelled the planned installation of a missile defense system in Poland and the Czech Republic. The system was defensive only, intended to shut down nuclear missiles from hostile countries like Iran. Russia opposed it on the grounds that Poland and the Czech Republic belong to its “sphere of influence” in Eastern Europe.
While the U.S. does not officially acknowledge any privileged area of Russian influence, the Obama administration’s decision to axe the missile defense shield, after Poland and the Czech Republic took great geopolitical risks in agreeing to host it, greatly emboldened the Kremlin inside the old Soviet block. Without a strong partner in Washington, our fledgling democratic allies in Eastern Europe will be much more susceptible to pressure from Moscow.
In this context, the Obama administration negotiated an arms control agreement with the Russians that it is currently trying to advance through the U.S. Senate. While the agreement may indeed limit some excesses from the nuclear arsenals of both countries, the high profile the administration awarded the negotiations returned Russia to its Cold War parity. Although Russia still posses a vast array of nuclear weapons, it is not a superpower anymore, and it should not be at the center of our foreign policy.
It should be recognized for what it is: a troubling menace determined to preserve at least shreds of the power and influence it commanded during its Cold War heyday.
Instead, President Obama has touted his “reset” with Russia as a significant foreign policy accomplishment. This despite the fact that the “reset” has accomplished virtually nothing, garnering Russian support only to impose mild sanctions on Iran for its nuclear weapons program. Even that came at the costs of months of protracted and timely negotiations.
Maybe when the economy picks up, Americans will begin to more carefully scrutinize the administrations equally disappointing record on foreign policy.
In short: The Obama administration’s record on foreign policy is just as disappointing as its record on the economy.
Tray Smith is the opinions editor of the Crimson White.
