Five times I counted, in the sixteen pages of the speech I excerpted, Putin's use of the term, or its equivalent, "respect:"
1. "Yes, many of the mechanisms we have for ensuring the world order were created quite a long time ago now, including and above all in the period immediately following World War II. Let me stress that the solidity of the system created back then rested not only on the balance of power and the rights of the victor countries, but on the fact that this system’s ‘founding fathers’ had respect for each other, did not try to put the squeeze on others, but attempted to reach agreements."
2. "I will add that international relations must be based on international law, which itself should rest on moral principles such as justice, equality and truth. Perhaps most important is respect for one’s partners and their interests. This is an obvious formula, but simply following it could radically change the global situation."
3. "Nobody wanted to listen to us and nobody wanted to talk. They simply told us: this is none of your business, point, end of discussion."
4-5. "The allegations and statements that Russia is trying to establish some sort of empire, encroaching on the sovereignty of its neighbours, are groundless. Russia does not need any kind of special, exclusive place in the world – I want to emphasise this. While respecting the interests of others, we simply want for our own interests to be taken into account and for our position to be respected."
And America sees itself as "exceptional," the flip side of the "respect" coin, which is also disrespectful. Addressing the American people via the op-ed he wrote for the quasi-official New York Times, Putin also used the word.
1. "Let’s ask ourselves, how comfortable are we with this, how safe are we, how happy living in this world, and how fair and rational has it become? Maybe, we have no real reasons to worry, argue and ask awkward questions? Maybe the United States’ exceptional position and the way they are carrying out their leadership really is a blessing for us all, and their meddling in events all around the world is bringing peace, prosperity, progress, growth and democracy, and we should maybe just relax and enjoy it all?
Let me say that this is not the case, absolutely not the case."
2. "In short, we see today attempts in a new and changing world to reproduce the familiar models of global management, and all this so as to guarantee their [the US’] exceptional position and reap political and economic dividends."
For a man who would be "lost" without Russia, this is too bitter to swallow. There are grounds for Putin's feelings! I think Madeline Albright was the first of Official America to use the term "exceptional" and it has been repeated by Official America routinely. Obama used a near-synonym, I believe in a U.N. speech, something very close to "America is the one indispensable nation." I believe Americans, official and unofficial, believe that they are exceptional, that is, in the moral sense, America is the "shining city on the hill." However close to the truth that is, it is an un-generous thing to say and to repeat and to repeat. Official America should be more modest in its statements.
Add triumphalism to disrespect and exceptionalism for the United States "declared itself the winner of the Cold War..." and Putin is a resentful man.
Putin believes America is being exceptional in another sense sense in addition. He believes America has acted since the end of the Cold War as an exception to the rules on international behavior. He has grounds there too! We put together a "coalition of the willing" for the Iraq invasion, before that in the Balkans. We went beyond the U.N. mandate in Libya. But there Putin's worldview fails.
From those and other examples Putin's argument, his worldview, loses cohesion and coherence.
1. "Yes, many of the mechanisms we have for ensuring the world order were created quite a long time ago now, including and above all in the period immediately following World War II. Let me stress that the solidity of the system created back then rested not only on the balance of power and the rights of the victor countries, but on the fact that this system’s ‘founding fathers’ had respect for each other, did not try to put the squeeze on others, but attempted to reach agreements."
2. "I will add that international relations must be based on international law, which itself should rest on moral principles such as justice, equality and truth. Perhaps most important is respect for one’s partners and their interests. This is an obvious formula, but simply following it could radically change the global situation."
3. "Nobody wanted to listen to us and nobody wanted to talk. They simply told us: this is none of your business, point, end of discussion."
4-5. "The allegations and statements that Russia is trying to establish some sort of empire, encroaching on the sovereignty of its neighbours, are groundless. Russia does not need any kind of special, exclusive place in the world – I want to emphasise this. While respecting the interests of others, we simply want for our own interests to be taken into account and for our position to be respected."
And America sees itself as "exceptional," the flip side of the "respect" coin, which is also disrespectful. Addressing the American people via the op-ed he wrote for the quasi-official New York Times, Putin also used the word.
1. "Let’s ask ourselves, how comfortable are we with this, how safe are we, how happy living in this world, and how fair and rational has it become? Maybe, we have no real reasons to worry, argue and ask awkward questions? Maybe the United States’ exceptional position and the way they are carrying out their leadership really is a blessing for us all, and their meddling in events all around the world is bringing peace, prosperity, progress, growth and democracy, and we should maybe just relax and enjoy it all?
Let me say that this is not the case, absolutely not the case."
2. "In short, we see today attempts in a new and changing world to reproduce the familiar models of global management, and all this so as to guarantee their [the US’] exceptional position and reap political and economic dividends."
For a man who would be "lost" without Russia, this is too bitter to swallow. There are grounds for Putin's feelings! I think Madeline Albright was the first of Official America to use the term "exceptional" and it has been repeated by Official America routinely. Obama used a near-synonym, I believe in a U.N. speech, something very close to "America is the one indispensable nation." I believe Americans, official and unofficial, believe that they are exceptional, that is, in the moral sense, America is the "shining city on the hill." However close to the truth that is, it is an un-generous thing to say and to repeat and to repeat. Official America should be more modest in its statements.
Add triumphalism to disrespect and exceptionalism for the United States "declared itself the winner of the Cold War..." and Putin is a resentful man.
Putin believes America is being exceptional in another sense sense in addition. He believes America has acted since the end of the Cold War as an exception to the rules on international behavior. He has grounds there too! We put together a "coalition of the willing" for the Iraq invasion, before that in the Balkans. We went beyond the U.N. mandate in Libya. But there Putin's worldview fails.
From those and other examples Putin's argument, his worldview, loses cohesion and coherence.
