Amid a big Russian military buildup near Ukraine and on the Russian-controlled Crimean Peninsula, the Kremlin has kept a lot of people guessing about its plans and intentions.
It did the same after President Vladimir Putin’s video call with U.S. President Joe Biden on December 7, issuing a statement about the talks nearly two hours after the White House released its readout.
When it came, one reason for the slower pace seemed clear: As has been the case several times in the past, the Kremlin readout was much longer than the White House statement. And it ranged decades back in time, making a reference to World War II and to a shared “special responsibility” for international security — wording that seemed designed to evoke the Cold War era and portray Russia and the United States as great powers whose weight in the world is equal.
He Said, He Said: Russian, U.S. Statements On Biden-Putin Call Differ Starkly (rferl.org)
