McCain and Obama on Russia-Georgia
Last month, U.S. presidential candidates John McCain (R-AZ) and Barack Obama (D-IL) returned from trips abroad to highlight their foreign policy expertise, and showing, they hope, how they would improve America’s poor image abroad. It has been three weeks since Russia entered Georgia, which is also enough time for both presidential candidates to gather their thoughts and tell America and the World their reactions to the conflict and what they would have done, say, had the entire ordeal took place in February 2009. Here is how their positions unfolded:
Reports from MSNBC on August 8 say that Obama and McCain took practically the same line in their initial reactions. Both called for Russia to immediately end its military operations and wanted the United Nations Security Council to help secure a peaceful resolution. Both expressed the need for help from others (McCain said the “European Union and OSCE,” Obama the “international community”).
Two days later, McCain sharpened his words and directed them at the Russian Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin. ABC News wrote that the Arizona Senator called him a “totalitarian dictator” and summated his assessment of Putin by describing three things he saw when he looked into his eyes: “K, G, and B.” (President Bush, in a famous eye-gazing moment several years ago, said he saw Putin’s soul and “knew he was a good man.”) In the same report, Obama said, “I think it is important at this point for all sides to show restraint and to stop this armed conflict,” showing a stark contrast in governing style. Both statements seem calibrated to appeal to American voters, the article suggests.
On August 14, the Huffington Post highlighted John McCain’s responses to the skirmish that stressed Russian aggression and the need to defend Georgia. Obama did this as well, though to a lesser extent, but with more emphasis on employing the help of America’s European partners.
Most recently, the statements have diverged sharply, such as Deutsche Welle reported on August 22. McCain, who took a bold position on Mr. Putin early on, became specific and called for the suspension of Russia from the Group of Eight highly industrialized nations, and expressed opposition to Russia’s entry in the World Trade Organization. Obama remained general, saying that we’ve entered a new area of relations with Russia, still emphasizing the need for cooperation with European countries on a new Russia policy.
