Is Vladimir Putin trying to moderate his confrontational stance against the West? There are two recent data points to consider: Putin’s speech at the annual Kremlin-organized Valdai Political Forum, and a leak from a high-profile Russian official attending the same forum.When asked by the Economist‘s Arkady Ostrovsky about Russia’s reckless rhetoric about the use of nuclear weapons, Putin appeared to backtrack:
With regard to nuclear weapons, brandishing nuclear weapons is the last thing to do. This is harmful rhetoric, and I do not welcome it. But we must proceed from reality and from the fact that nuclear weapons are a deterrent …read more
Source: The American Interest
