‘Great Game’: US-Russia Standoff Aimed at Maintaining Influence on Global Arena

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10 years ago

‘Great Game’: US-Russia Standoff Aimed at Maintaining Influence on Global Arena

The cooling in relations between Russia and the United States has little to do with the “second Cold War”. It rather resembles the political logic of the early 20th century, when major world powers played the so called “great game” to maintain their political influence on the global arena, German expert Harald Biermann told Tagesschau.

The deterioration of relations between Moscow and Washington did not happen overnight, the historian said. The important factor here has been the fact that Russia has refused to “come to terms” with the dominance of the West near its borders, and that US President Barack Obama has been pursuing a very “inconsistent policy”. “US foreign policy during Obama’s presidency will be assessed as a phase of retreat and relative weakness. Although he had inherited the difficult legacy of the unpopular wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, he has hardly achieved any improvements, having made serious mistakes in the assessment of the situation,” the expert said.

Biermann also noted that the United States is no longer an absolute leader in international politics: during Obama’s presidency a vacuum formed on the world stage, which is now being filled with other players.

According to the expert, Moscow, for its turn, has all reasons to say that it has become an important global player involved in the resolution of international problems. “Putin is playing the ‘Great Game’ that has been played by major power for centuries. Especially in Germany we have forgotten how to think in these categories,” the expert noted. A new low point in relations between Russia and the US was reached after the United States suspended bilateral dialogue with Russia on finding a solution to the conflict in Syria on Monday. The relations between the two countries deteriorated after a US-Russian brokered ceasefire deal collapsed within a week.