BREAKING NEWS: President Obama cancels meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin over Edward Snowden asylum, as tensions escalate. During his appearance on ‘The Tonight Show,’ President Obama accused Russia of slipping back into ‘Cold War thinking’ and a ‘Cold War mentality’ at times. He also ripped Russia on its anti-gay laws, saying he has “no patience for countries that try to treat gays and lesbians and transgendered persons in ways that intimidate them or are harmful to them.”
In a rare diplomatic snub, President Barack Obama is canceling plans to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow next month.
The decision reflects both U.S. anger over Russia’s harboring of National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden and growing frustration within the Obama administration over what it sees as Moscow’s stubbornness on other key issues, including missile defense and human rights.
White House deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes said Russia’s decision last week to defy the U.S. and grant Snowden temporary asylum only exacerbated an already troubled relationship. And with few signs that progress would be made during the Moscow summit on other agenda items, Rhodes said the president decided to cancel the talks.
“We’ll still work with Russia on issues where we can find common ground, but it was the unanimous view of the president and his national security team that a summit did not make sense in the current environment,” Rhodes said. Source: ABC News
This is, indeed, the start of ‘Cold War’ of sorts between Russia and the U.S. I would venture to say if a Russian intelligence contractor had leaked classified information and ended up at JFK International Airport, Vladimir Putin wouldn’t want the U.S. to defy his wishes to return the suspect to Moscow. Last week we were among many calling on President Obama to cancel his one-on-one meeting with Vladimir Putin over the provocation with Edward Snowden’s asylum.
Here’s the Drudge Report’s lead story:
This was cross-posted from The Hinterland Gazette.