Ironically though the G8 industrial Summit in Germany was slated to deal with climate change issues such as greenhouse gasses, it was a change of Russia’s political climate which dominated the discussions. But before saying the Russian bear is back in form yearning for the chill of the bygone days, consider some of the differences. Though relations with the U.S and much of Europe remain strained, President George W. Bush stressed that “the Cold War is over.” At the same time Bush criticized the Putin government for “derailing” political reforms inside Russia.

Putin’s Russia is flush with petro dollars from massive energy sales especially to Europe and the USA. The Europeans who are hooked to Russian natural gas are at the peril of those supplies being interrupted or shut off. Ukraine found this out the hard way when Moscow was not pleased with an election outcome in Kiev. In other cases the European Union became decidedly nervous earlier this year when there were some supply interruptions. Russia remains the 11th largest oil supplier to the USA.

The black gold has given the Kremlin rulers vast financial resources the former communist regime could only dream of. Moreover Europe’s energy dependence has muted criticism of the Putin dictatorship in many EU capitals and has anesthetized political attitudes too.

In this context we see the current foreign policy friction with the West whether the missile shield row with the Czech Republic and Poland, Moscow’s blocking actions over Kosovo’s future status from former Yugoslavia, or Russia’s intricate duet with Islamic Iran. In all cases Putin is pressing for Russia to be reckoned as a major political player and power despite its diminished military status after the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Currently the U.S. is constructing a defensive anti-missile shield to guard against rockets from rogue states such as Iran or North Korea. The shield which needs radar sites in the Czech Republic and interceptor rockets in Poland, both NATO members, has triggered Russian reactions about “encroachment”. Both the Czechs and Poles were part of the old Warsaw Pact and Soviet Empire. Moscow sees this move as yet another loss of influence among its erstwhile comrades and its diminished power status.

Earlier this year President Putin slammed American foreign policy. Then on the eve of the G-8 Summit he again similarly accused the West of “imperialism,” over plans for the defensive missile shield. Then after test firings of new Russian missiles, he warned, “We were not the initiators of this new round of the arms race.” Moscow portrays its missile tests as a response to the American plans. Importantly, the Bush Administration offered the Kremlin access and evidence to prove the shield is not aimed against Russia.

The radar station row with the Czech Republic has triggered Russian reactions to the point of Putin blustering that he would retarget missiles on European cities!

“If the American nuclear potential grows in European territory, we will have to have new targets in Europe,” President Putin stated. While the Bush Administration stressed the remarks were “not helpful,” Polish Prime Minister Jaroslaw Kaczynski, said Putin's comments were reminiscent of the Cold War rhetoric of Nikita Khrushchev, Soviet leader in the 1950’s and 60’s. “This is language which has never been used by Yeltsin, nor Gorbachev and not even Brezhnev... This is the language of Khrushchev,” he said.

While this rhetoric sent a cold war chill through Central European capitals, the reaction from Washington was properly muted, for now. Presidents Bush and Putin will meet during the G8 Summit and later again in July to attempt to smooth out months of rising tensions. Putin’s KGB pedigree is showing, he will use bluff and ballistic bluster to cover a weak hand. It’s up to the West not to overreact but to realize this reality and play the game with fewer illusions.