Obama's re-election offers no promise of second Russian relations 'reset'

Unlike US president Barak Obama, who took his time to congratulate his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on his third-term re-election in March, the latter was quick to send a telegram to convey his best wishes to Obama over his re-election. The Russian president's spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, told Interfax news agency: "In general, the Kremlin greets the information about Barack Obama's election victory very positively." He added: "We hope to develop and improve the positive initiatives in bilateral relations between Russia and the US in the interests of international security and stability on the world stage."

In contrast to Peskov's reserved message, Russian prime minister and former president Dmitry Medvedev, who together with Obama oversaw the launch of the relations "reset" in March 2009, was more welcoming over the news on his onetime counterpart. He told the Russian media that Obama was a "clear and predictable partner", while expressing his relief that the Republican contender, Mitt Romney, lost the race, saying: "I am pleased that the president of this wealthy country will not be someone who considers Russia as the No. 1 foe. This is paranoia." Medvedev also commented on the importance of the United States for the Russian economy, saying: "Whether we like America or not, the health of the dollar affects every Russian family."