Obama’s Europe Trip Tailored to Get Noticed by Putin

[Purveyor]

By Margaret Talev and Julianna Goldman Jun 2, 2014 12:01 AM ET

President Barack Obama’s European trip this week is tailored to get the attention of Vladimir Putin, who’s done more in recent months to unsettle the continent than anyone since the end of the Cold War.

Obama will use his speeches and meetings with allies to emphasize the Russian president’s choice between further economic isolation, if Russia continues to seek more control in Ukraine and other former Soviet areas, or an easing of sanctions if he changes course.

Starting tomorrow in Warsaw, then in Brussels and Paris, the U.S. president will promote economic cooperation, energy security, and solidarity among NATO and Group of Seven nations. He’ll meet with Ukraine’s Petro Poroshenko, newly elected to become president, and underscore the benefits for Russia if it leaves Ukraine free to pursue its own path.

Putin, who will cross paths with Obama at the June 6 ceremonies marking the 70th anniversary of D-Day in Normandy, will be making his own priorities known.

more...

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-06-02/obama-s-europe-trip-tailored-to-get-noticed-by-putin.html

[geek tragedy]

1. seems like a pretty generic, predictable agenda

Starting tomorrow in Warsaw, then in Brussels and Paris, the U.S. president will promote economic cooperation, energy security, and solidarity among NATO and Group of Seven nations. He’ll meet with Ukraine’s Petro Poroshenko, newly elected to become president, and underscore the benefits for Russia if it leaves Ukraine free to pursue its own path.

Brussels and Paris are not exactly head-scratcher stops.

[GeorgeGist]

2. Let the good times roll ...

At the same time, the Obama administration has used the crisis in Ukraine to promote the merits of a proposed trade deal, the Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, between the U.S. and 28-nation European Union.