Robert Amsterdam

There's an interesting interview with Andrei Piontkovsky over at CFR.org in which the commentator argues that Russia is nearing the end of its "confrontational cycle with the West" - however, it's not because Medvedev is the golden boy:

"There is a theory that Putin was a bad guy and that Medvedev is a good guy, but the fact is that they are members of the same clan. There is some reason to expect a kind of improvement in U.S.-Russian relations, [but] not because a “good guy” has come to power. It was a collective decision to improve slightly relations with the West. Medvedev is very loyal to Putin; otherwise he would not have been appointed. I think it is vice-versa: They appointed Medvedev, a person with a more liberal image, because they collectively decided that it is now time to make some improvements in their relationship with the West."