To win reelection, Medvedev had to win one vote: Putin’s. To win that vote, Medvedev above all else had to demonstrate his unique abilities to work with Obama to achieve results that were good for Russia. We had just handed the Russian president a defeat at the very moment when Medvedev believed Putin was deciding his fate. It played into the narrative of Medvedev’s critics back home that he was weak and susceptible to being pushed around by the Americans. The momentum for missile-defense.

In retrospect, all revolutions seem inevitable. Beforehand, all revolutions seem impossible.

In the short run, the big windfall winners ... have been the Islamists.

I don't think the Bush administration could have been better served. This was a brilliant performance &#8212 and I say this as a critic of the Bush administration on a lot of things.

That is we are not moving in an antagonistic way. Our presidents definitely have a genuine, personal relationship that they both think is important and vital to their respective countries. But they are not looking to do anything new or creative, to try to make U.S.-Russian relations better or more comprehensive.

I've always been against having the State Department promote civil society directly in other countries,

There are lots of rumors, ... What he really needs to do is fundamentally change his government. ... There's a lot of stagnation. ... I'm not so optimistic Yeltsin's going to do that.

There are lots of rumors. What he really needs to do is fundamentally change his government. ... There's a lot of stagnation. ... I'm not so optimistic Yeltsin's going to do that.