Fans of the reset claim the following gainsfor the US:1. ARussian abstention from a UN security council resolution authorising sanctionsagainst Iran for continuing its nuclear weapons program.2. The right of passage through Russia for NATO personnel & equipmentheaded for Afghanistan.3. Atreaty reducing the number of nuclear weapons held by the two countries.
Let's take each of these in turn.
1. The sanctions on Iran have proved to be ineffective and the nuclearweapons programme is proceeding unabated. Russia continues to support the Iranians to the fullest extent itcan. No gain to the US.2. NATO success in Afghanistan is as important to Russia as it is to the US. Afghanistan is a major source of drugs flowing into Russia and its fallto the Taliban would generate Muslim insurgencies in Central Asia and inpossibly Russia itself. It's in Russia'sinterests to cooperate and this should not be seen as a "win" for theUS.3. Russia needed to reduce the number of nuclear weapons it wasmaintaining, as many of them were old, insecure and would have required asubstantial investment to upgrade. Furthermore, by moving down to equal numbers of weapons on bothe sides,Russia will gain in a relative sense, as the US currently has superiority. No US win here either.
In summary, US gains form the reset are,well, zero.
Russian gains, on the other hand, aresubstantial:A. The US has turned a blind eye toRussia's gross abuses in Georgia. Theseare too numerous to go into here.B. The US has imposed an informal arms embargo on Georgia.C. NATO has backtracked on membership plans for Georgia and Ukraine.D. The US is championing Russia's entry into the World Trade OrganisationE. The Administration is attempting to thwart the passage of the MagnitskyAct.F. The achievement of parity in nuclear weapons capabilities, as noted above.
Now don't get me wrong; there are some goodthings about the reset. It's a goodthing for nations to talk with, rather than yell at, each other. The concept of trying to make progress onissues where progress is possible is useful, as is, in some cases, the idea ofde-linking certain topics from others.
All that notwithstanding, there is a majorproblem with how the reset has unfolded. It is that the US has beencomprehensively out-negotiated by Russia.
