“Donald VladimirTrump is God’s gift that keeps on giving,” said Vladimir Frolov, a Russian columnist and foreign affairs analyst. “Trump implements Russia’s negative agenda by default, undermining the U.S.–led world order, U.S. alliances, U.S. credibility as a partner and an ally. All of this on his own. Russia can just relax and watch and root for Trump, which Putin does at every TV appearance.”
One headline in a regional Russian newspaper trumpeted, “Trump Leaves the Dog Out in the Cold,” referring to Mr. Mattis’s nickname, Mad Dog, from his days in the Marines. Konstantin Kosachev, the leader of the international affairs committee in the upper house of Russia’s Parliament, wrote on Facebook that the differences in Washington were “an interesting signal, and moreover, rather a positive one.”
By Neil MacFarquhar Dec. 21, 2018
nytimes.com |
