Eli Lake, Columnist

Treat Russia Like the International Poison It Is

High expectations from the U.S. did not lead the Kremlin to better behavior. Quite the opposite.

October 13, 2016 at 6:00 AM EDT

Eli Lake is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering national security and foreign policy. He was the senior national security correspondent for the Daily Beast and covered national security and intelligence for the Washington Times, the New York Sun and UPI.

John Kerry and Michael McFaul in Moscow. You can't say they didn't try.
Photographer: MLADEN ANTONOV/AFP/Getty Images

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Russia’s ambassador to Washington is disappointed. Despite great potential for cooperation, Sergei Kislyak told an audience Tuesday at Johns Hopkins University that the two countries are locked in “unfriendly discussions.” Wouldn’t the world be safer and more stable if these two powers got along?

With apologies to Ambassador Kislyak, the answer to this question is no. Contrary to his protestations, Russia is not invested in protecting the world order. It is dedicated to undermining the organizations, agreements and laws that comprise it.

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