Stephen Holmes
![Russian President Vladimir Putin arrives at Belfast International airport in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on June 17, 2013, to attend the G8 summit at the Lough Erne resort. US President Barack Obama was to meet Putin for potentially vexatious talks, as both leaders now offer open military backing to rival sides in Syria's civil war. AFP PHOTO/ PETER MUHLY](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/gettyimages-170743445.jpg?w=800?quality=90)
![Cars pass by a billboard showing US President-elect Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin placed by pro-Serbian movement in the town of Danilovgrad on November 16, 2016.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump spoke on the phone on November 15, evening and agreed on the need to normalise ties between Washington and Moscow, the Kremlin said. / AFP / Savo PRELEVIC (Photo credit should read SAVO PRELEVIC/AFP/Getty Images)](https://cdn.statically.io/img/foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/gettyimages-623631418.jpg?w=800?quality=90)
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