No one was surprised when Obama announced that he was abandoning the Bush plan to base missile defense systems in eastern Europe. This issue has been a point of contention between the US and Russia. Russia claimed that this missile defense system would neutralize its nuclear arsenal, and the US claimed that it was only building the missile defense system to protect itself from a nuclear attack originating in a rouge state in the middle east (Iran and Syria and Iraq in 20 years). So this dialogue between a superpower and a former superpower has gone back and forth. Russia threatened to station missiles (that can hit any location in the world) closer to Poland than they already are, but the US continued to move forward with its plan.

Now the President has decided that the American people only kind of need to be protected from nuclear missiles. This decision was made with the idea that it would lubricate relations (he he he) between the United States and Russia while sea-based missile defenses would be expanded. The kicker, is that relations between the US and Russia really aren’t all that bad. Russia recently agreed to allow US military supply convoys to use territory controlled by Russia to supply our soldiers in Afghanistan. So Obama has failed to solve a problem that doesn’t exist.

Although relations with Russia have been strained over the last few years, none of the subtle violations of national sovereignty or excessive military posturing that characterized the Cold War have been common. Putin created a Russia that is eager to once again be feared and respected by the rest of the world. Russia has tightened its ties with Venezuela, Iran, and Cuba. Russia also invaded Georgia and is once again striving to rival the United State’s strength and global influence. This is not a Russia who wants to build trust, good will, or warm fuzzy feelings between itself and the rest of the world. This is a Russia that wants to be perceived as strong.

At best Obama’s most recent foreign policy move is naive. At worst it is a mistake that will not just make the United States appear weak, but it will actually make us weaker. A missile defense system could potentially stop a nuclear warhead from reaching a major city in Europe or the US and killing millions of people. It doesn’t make sense to endanger national security in a significant and tangible way in order to appease a government that has no interest in being appeased.

We have defeated Russia in the Cold War (admittedly we still haven’t payed most of the bills for the massive military build up that bankrupted the Kremlin, but that is another discussion for another time) and we can do it again.  The point is that the Communist/socialist system in Russia collapsed and the good ol’ US of A is still here and going strong… but of course a few well aimed nuclear missiles could change that.