MOSCOW, January 19. /TASS/. The outgoing US administration proved to be short-sighted on relations with Russia while sanctions did no good, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said on Facebook.

Sanctions did no good

According to Medvedev, during Barack Obama’s presidency, "the pressure on our country has reached unprecedented proportions." "Ill-considered economic sanctions, which did no one any good, have reduced our cooperation to zero. There were the ridiculous individual sanctions that nobody paid attention to," Medvedev added. "And it doesn’t get any dumber than restricting entry to the United States for the leadership of the Russian parliament, ministers, and businessmen, thus deliberately reducing the possibility of full-fledged contacts and closing the window to cooperation," the Russian prime minister went on to say noting that "the bet was on brute force and sheer pressure."

"It is impossible to imagine such actions even during the Cuban missile crisis, even though the situation was much more serious then… Who benefited from this? No one. Certainly not the United States. It didn’t work," Medvedev said.

Washington’s short-sighted policy

 

"The Obama administration was completely short-sighted on such an important and complex issue as relations with Russia," he added. "There was hope that it would be smarter, more circumspect, and more responsible - despite differing assessments of complex international processes, varying approaches to key decisions, the role of emotion and the pressure exerted by various political forces," Medvedev said.

According to him, "the most important thing was to remember that Russia is not a 'banana republic' [even though equal dialogue is a must with all members of the international community]." "It is unacceptable to talk to a country which is a permanent member of the UN Security Council in such a manner. A country with defensive capabilities equal to the United States. It is important to remember that Russia-US relations, without exaggeration, determine the fate of major international initiatives," he stressed.

"Often, we may like or dislike some of the policies of our key partners, but we must be aware of our common responsibility. This is something that the Obama administration failed to do," Medvedev concluded.

Reckless foreign policy 

"Everyone is aware that the United States has always tried to" steer" almost all global processes, brazenly interfering in the internal affairs of various countries and waging multiple wars on foreign soil. Iraq, the Arab Spring, Ukraine, and Syria are just a few examples of such reckless policies in recent years. We can still see their consequences, which range from the complete collapse of the political systems in these countries to wars which claimed tens of thousands of lives," the Russian prime minister said.  

And there is always an explanation for that, Medvedev continued - "the interests of the United States".