Rattling more nerves across the Pacific, 32-year-old reclusive North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un announced New Year’s Day he neared completion of a new Intercontinental Ballistic Missile. Already slapped with feckless sanction by the U.N. Security Council, Kim’s marched ahead with his nuclear missile program, hoping one day to threaten Los Angeles or San Francisco. Kim listens to no one on the U.N. Security Council other than China and Russia, both occasionally exercise leverage on Pyongyang when Kim gets too big for his britches. Under President Barack Obama, the U.S. has had zero leverage with Kim because relations with China and Russian have been at such a low ebb. “Research and development of cutting edge arms equipment is actively progressing and ICBM rocket test launch preparation is in its last stage,” said Kim at New Year’s Day TV event.
Driving U.S.-Russian relations to their lowest level since the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, Obama showed why the concept of linkage still applies to international relations. Obama needed Russia to help contain growing nuclear threats from North Korea and Iran but had little cooperation from Moscow. While no one expected it, Obama continued the Cold War strategy of pitting U.S. foreign policy against Moscow. Once Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Crimea March 1, 2014, Barack joined his counterparts at the European Union to sanction Russia. Announcing new sanctions Dec. 23 for alleged Russian hacking in the 2016 election, Obama lashed out at Putin only three weeks from leaving office. Obama still hasn’t seen the big picture of finding common ground with Russia, primarily to deal with hot spots around the globe, especially rogue regimes like North Korea.
President-elect Donald Trump has done his utmost to reset U.S.-Russian relations, despite opposition from the White House and Cold War hawks on Capitol Hill. Fresh from a trip to the Baltic States and Ukraine, Sen. John McCain (R-Az.) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) push for more sanctions against Russia. Joined by Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Trump has his work cut out for him beating back Cold War hysteria sweeping Capitol Hill. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) signaled he’d oppose any attempt to set up an Independent Counsel to investigate Russian hacking in the 2016 election. Democratic nominee former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton blamed her loss to Trump on Russian hacking, among other things. McCain and Graham, both former GOP candidates, are some of Trump’s biggest critics in Congress, rejecting a reset with Russia.
U.N. Security Council sanctions have done next to nothing to deter North Korea from developing nuclear weapons. Now McCain, Graham and Schiff want to sabotage President-elect Donald Trump’s attempt to reverse the damage to U.S.-Russian relations from Obama’s eight years. Global threats require working relationships with countries like Russia where there are foreign policy challenges. When you consider Putin’s March 1, 2014 invasion of Crimea, it has little national security significance to the U.S. other than loud voices seeking European Union membership. Putin’s move in Crimea was no different than former President George W, Bush’s decision to invade Iraq March 20, 2003. Invading Crimea had far less regional consequences than when the U.S. invaded Iraq. Slapping Russia with sanctions for Crimea but not for the U.S. invading Baghdad shows the hypocrisy.
Lashing out Dec. 23 against Putin, Obama puts down the hammer on Russia but does nothing to address cyber security failures at the National Security Agency and Homeland Security departments. If there’s anyone to blame for hacking at the Democratic National Committee or Podesta’s private emails, it relates to the deteriorated relations with Russia. President-elect Trump wants to reset relations with Putin not for his benefit but to help U.S. national security in the age of rogue regimes and global terrorism. Harping on what the Russians did in the past won’t help put U.S.-Russian relations back on the right track. Whether admitted to or not by McCain, Graham and Schiff, the U.S. needs Russia’s global intel and military reach to help its own national security. Facing Kim’s promise to develop ICBMs, the U.S. needs Moscow to neutralize gathering threats.
Given Kim Jong-un’s promise to develop ICBMs to reach the U.S. homeland, the U.S. can’t rely on U.N. sanctions for nuclear containment. Cold War hawks on Capitol Hill, both Republicans and Democrats, can’t slap sanctions on Russia without compromising U.S. national security. With terrorism and rogue regimes threatening world order, the U.S. can’t afford to follow Obama’s policy of alienating Russia. Whatever happened in Crimea has little consequence to U.S. national security. Letting McCain and Graham make trouble in the Baltic States and Ukraine interferes with Trump’s foreign policy. U.S.-Russian relations is far more important to U.S. national security than anything going on in Ukraine or the Baltic States. Members of Congress, while offering opinions, have no business dictating U.S. foreign policy, something left to the commander-in-chief.
