“In any case, it will not be a friendly conversation,” expects Russia correspondent Iris de Graaf. “No one expects them to forgive each other.”
The Americans are also not very optimistic, according to Waagmeester. “And Biden’s own team is also trying to temper expectations.”
Biden has said little about what he wants to discuss. “He says he is not out for conflict,” says Waagmeester, “but is willing to strike back. The goal is not to change Russia, but to arrive at a predictable relationship.”
Putin wants to talk about tackling terrorism, the corona virus, international conflicts, nuclear weapons and the climate. “All international subjects, on which he believes they can work together,” says De Graaf. “Putin especially does not want to be lectured by Biden about internal politics.”
Putin will therefore not go into topics such as human rights, Belarus or the fate of Alexei Navalny. That Navalny’s opposition party was just before the summit forbidden, analysts say is a statement that the US has no influence on domestic decisions. Yet Putin also seems willing to make small concessions: on Tuesday Russia removed Belarusian opposition leader Tikhanovskaya from the international wanted list.
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