•One of the last executive orders the outgoing Russian president, Vladimir Putin, passed was about the signing of the US-Russia civilian nuclear agreement, or the now famous 123 agreement. By this agreement, Russia and the US hope to fully cooperate in the field of nuclear energy, maintaining adequate stocks of nuclear fuel and facilitating the exchange of high-end nuclear reactor technology between them. The deal is significant, given the testy relationship between the two countries over the past two years. What gives the agreement added significance is the fact that the outgoing Russian president deemed the deal important enough to go through, rather than let his successor start from scratch.

The lesson for us from the US-Russia agreement is this. The deal demolishes the “US hegemony” argument of the Left parties vis-a-vis the Indo-US nuclear deal. Russia, by signing this deal, has not in any way become America’s poodle, has it? Far from it.

Russia under Putin has undergone a profound change in attitudes and outlook amongst its citizens, who were demoralised after the end of the Cold War. Over the past decade a confident, nationalistic Russian identity has emerged, with the rising standards of living and a gradual return of Russia to having a say in world affairs. Given these factors, a deal that would subvert the notion of a rising Russia is unthinkable.

— Karan Thakur

New Delhi

Alliance for people

•It was good to read about the “citizens’ alliance initiative against malnutrition” ‘Let politics take a backseat’ by Supriya Sule . Also, the fact that so many MPs have learnt to work together is indeed praiseworthy.

... contd.