Relations between Biden and Putin are thawing ... in small steps

Joe Biden's entourage had set the bar for the Russian-American summit in Geneva rather low, repeating that the important thing lay in his very outfit.

That the two most powerful leaders on the planet - apart from the Chinese Xi Jinping - talk to each other "eye to eye" in order to make a strained relationship more "predictable".

They spoke to each other, certainly for less time than expected since the meeting on the shores of Lake Geneva ended at 5:05 p.m. instead of 6 p.m., and even shook hands.

Gesture not so usual in a pandemic and not so natural on the part of the American president who once called Vladimir Poutine a "killer".

VIDEO.

When Biden called Putin a "killer"

From the outset, Biden softened his counterpart by evoking "two great powers", while Barack Obama had annoyed him by designating Russia as "a regional power".

Walking on eggshells, the Swiss protocol officers had carefully ensured that each camp had, in the villa La Grange, an identical number of rooms, square meters, period chandeliers and other Louis-Philippe armchairs.

There was no miracle, the bucolic charm of the manor house did not thaw the atmosphere to the point of leading to a joint press conference.

Especially since Joe Biden, who played there his reputation as an experienced negotiator, wanted to avoid the catastrophic effect of the Trump-Putin duo at the previous summit in 2018, where the Russian had wandered the American.

No progress ... just signals

The master of the Kremlin, stiff in his press briefing, welcomed a “constructive” meeting and described his interlocutor as a “balanced person”.

For his part, Biden, dropping his jacket in the heat of the park, judged the tone "positive".

He admitted that the Russian, to whom he offered a pair of Aviators glasses, "is not looking for a Cold War" with America.

But what advances?

Not much on the merits.

Essentially, signals, such as the agreement for an imminent return of the ambassadors, who had been recalled "in consultations" in Moscow and Washington.

The Biden administration had even expelled a dozen Russian diplomats, in retaliation for cyber attacks against its state computer systems - notably electoral interference - and private.

The company operating an oil pipeline between the West Coast and the East Coast had been targeted with ransom demand, causing a mini-shortage of gasoline in Washington.

The death of the opponent Alexeï Navalny "would be a tragedy"

On Wednesday, it was decided to initiate "a dialogue on cybersecurity". It does not look easy, when we hear Putin assure reporters that most of the attacks in the world come from the United States. While in Washington a high-ranking official accuses Russia of protecting on its soil from hackers in exchange for services rendered to the Kremlin!

No announcement on the hot issues - Belarus, Ukraine with the sounds of Russian boots, etc. But a pass of arms on human rights, of which Joe Biden wants to be the champion, having notably assured that the death of the opponent Alexeï Navalny "would be a tragedy" that he would take personally to heart. Putin replied, coldly, that "this man knew he was breaking the law". And asked if the arrests of pro-Trump activists who attacked the Capitol in January, "it was human rights"? "Ridiculous comparison," swept Biden. In short, a thaw, but not too much ...