Russia tastes nasty for former ambassador Michael McFaul

Former US Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul explained why US President Barack Obama did not want to meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin at the UN General Assembly in New York. McFaul explained the reason with the help of a screenshot from Russian TV show "Vesti Nedeli" ("News of the Week") hosted by Dmitry Kiselev.

The screenshot depicted the US president next to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The photos were presented with a few features that, according to Russian journalists, unite the policy of the US administration with the Islamic State.

"Putin's television compares Obama to ISIS leader but Russians wonder why Obama is not so eager to meet Putin at UNGA," McFaul tweeted.

This is the power of Russian TV crews: only one photo can cause harm to the serenity of mind of the American leader.

Noteworthy, it was strange to hear the retired diplomat saying that Obama did not want to meet with Putin at the UN General Assembly. Did Obama call Mr. McFaul to tell him that there would not be a meeting with Putin after such a pic on TV?

For the time being, nothing is known whether such a meeting is possible at all. As for the comparison, wasn't it Barack Obama who put Russia next to ISIS on the list of biggest threats to the world? If Michael McFaul does not remember, it happened a year ago, at a meeting of the UNGA. A month later, in October 2014, Obama said the same in Chicago.

What about recent remarks from Pentagon chief Ashton Carter, who said that terrorists and Russia were two major threats to the United States? We do not mention US media in this article. US publications have compared Russian President Putin to - you name it!

It just so happens that the Russian leadership has a lot more reasons not to have the desire to meet with US President Obama.

In general, Mr. McFaul has not been on friendly terms with Russian journalists. In 2012, McFaul said that Russia was a "wild country." The diplomat made the remark in Moscow, after he was approached by Russian reporters, who started asking him questions he did not like.

"It's a wild country. It's not normal. It doesn't happen in the United States, or Britain, or Germany or China, only here and only with you," Michael McFaul said.

He later admitted, though, that he made a mistake and apologized for the his choice of words. Yet, it does look like McFaul still has a bitter taste of Russia in his mouth.

Anton Kulikov
Pravda.Ru

Read article on the Russian version of Pravda.Ru

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