Reuters on how Russia may approach the Obama presidency:
After Barack Obama’s election win, Kremlin officials argued over whether Russian President Dmitry Medvedev should congratulate him with a warm, handwritten letter or an impersonal note, according to one analyst.
Russia’s intense dislike of U.S. policies and its resolve to stand up to them are not in doubt but the anecdote illustrates a dilemma the Kremlin is wrestling with about what tactics to use in dealing with an Obama White House.
Do they pile on the pressure to force him to drop disputed projects like the missile defense system in Europe, or take a more conciliatory tone, hoping that if they do not alienate him Obama will take a softer line on Russia than his predecessor?
In the end, Kremlin officials compromised by sending him a telegram while dropping the icy tone, said Nikola Zlobin, of U.S.-based think tank the World Security Institute, who said he had been told the story by several Russian government sources.