Putin at Davos: Finding Mutual Trust A Key Goal
Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin spoke during the opening session at Davos today. The speech was quite an exercise in oratory. First, Putin stated the following:
In the last few months, virtually every speech on this subject started with criticism of the United States. But I will do nothing of the kind.
Putin then went on to criticize the U.S., though not by name. Here is a dig at the dollar-centric global financial system, with Putin asserting that the days of the supremacy of the U.S. Federal Reserve are numbered:
The entire economic growth system, where one regional centre prints money without respite and consumes material wealth, while another regional centre manufactures inexpensive goods and saves money printed by other governments, has suffered a major setback.
For the record, we find this kind of Soviet-era style oratory, where you say one thing but mean another, unacceptable. If Putin has a problem with the U.S., he should say so clearly and then propose some equally clear solutions. Nobody will resolve anything with the kind of two-faced approach Putin put forth today.
With this criticism of Putin's speech out of the way, we have to admit the U.S. deserves to be criticized. Our financial system has failed miserably. Our banks and corporations have failed, our regulators have failed, our Yale- and Harvard-educated executives have failed, and our investors have failed. Did we leave out anyone?
So, we don't blame Putin for having taken the U.S. to task in his speech. we just disagree with the way he did it. Oh, and have we made it clear that we don't think Putin is the guy to offer credible solutions?