Trump’s praise of Putin could signal a new day for US policy

HONOLULU: Moscow is hoping Donald Trump will reconsider the sanctions the US is levying in response to its finding of election hacking, a wait-and-see strategy bolstered by the American president-elect’s own approving words for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Putin has essentially put relations with the US on hold until Trump replaces President Barack Obama on Jan. 20. Though his foreign minister encouraged him to slap back at Washington for the sanctions imposed by Obama, Putin decided that Russia wouldn’t immediately retaliate.
“Great move on delay (by V. Putin),” Trump wrote Friday on Twitter. “I always knew he was very smart!”
Praise for a longtime adversary at odds with a sitting American president is remarkable for a president-elect — and the latest signal that US-Russia relations, among other policies, could be getting a makeover from Trump.
Whether he steers the US toward or away from Russia is shaping up as the first major test of his foreign policy disposition and his willingness to buck fellow Republicans, who for years have argued Obama wasn’t being tough enough on Russia.
In response to the election hacking he blames on Russia, Obama ordered sanctions on Russian spy agencies, closed two Russian compounds and expelled 35 diplomats the US said were really spies. Brushing off Obama, Putin said Russia would plan steps to restore US ties “based on the policies that will be carried out by the administration of President D. Trump.” Not only would Russia not kick Americans out, Putin said, he was inviting the kids of all US diplomats to the Kremlin’s New Year’s and Christmas parties.
“At this point, they’re trolling Obama,” said Olga Oliker, who directs the Russia program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.