News Analysis: Russia-West ties thaw, but obstacles remain before normalizing relations

The current visit by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to Russia, the third in less than one year, has showed signs of thawing in relations between Moscow and Washington.

However, the improvement of bilateral relations is only a tactical choice in nature, and many fundamental obstacles remain before the two sides can truly normalize their relations, analysts said.

Russia-U.S. relations had plummeted to the lowest ebb since the Cold War due to Russia's recovery of Crimea in early 2014. But the two sides have moved towards closer cooperation since last year, especially after Russia started military actions against the Islamic State (IS) in Syria.

Kerry's visit to Moscow is the first of its kind so far this year and the third in 12 months, while his talks with Russian leaders covered a wide range of topics, including the Iranian nuclear issue, the Ukraine crisis, the political settlement in Syria and issues concerning security and bilateral relations.

"Both Moscow and Washington want, and also need, to attempt more reconciliation with each other at the current stage," said Wan Chengcai, an expert on Russian foreign policy.

Russia will hold parliamentary elections in September while the U.S. presidential election is slated for November, Wan noted, saying that when the two countries are focusing their attention on domestic affairs, the last thing they need is an external environment that is not excessively is harsh and hostile.

However, reconciliation is clearly not the whole picture of current U.S.-Russia relations.

The pair are still locked on a collision course when it comes to issues concerning their core national interests, such as the Ukraine crisis and the issue of human rights.

Earlier this month, U.S. President Barack Obama issued an order to extend by one year a series of sanctions against Russia over its role in the Ukraine crisis.

Shortly ahead of the Kerry's visit, the Russian foreign ministry said in a statement that "the situation in Russian-U.S. relations remain uneasy. A series of confrontational steps made by Washington, under the pretext of the Ukrainian crisis, has dealt a strong blow to cooperation."

Wan said that pragmatic cooperation is now a priority in the diplomatic relations between Moscow and Washington, which tend to focus their efforts on dealing with specific issues.

"The recent improvement of relations between Moscow and Washington can be seen as a tactical adjustment," said Wan, adding that problems in their relations are rather systematical and are therefore hard to be solved."

On the same day when Kerry arrived in Moscow, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier also visited Russia for talks with President Vladimir Putin and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

Analysts said Steinmeier's visit might send such a signal that many European countries are now willing to improve relations with Russia.

The European Union (EU) might have a much stronger desire than Washington to ease ties with Moscow as the sanctions imposed on Russia have also inflicted economic pain on many European countries.

"Russia, as a big power in the world, is highly unlikely to be completely isolated internationally, and the U.S. policy of isolating Russia has yet to bear any fruit," Wan said, adding that the sanction measures have put both Russia and many European economies in a "tough spot."

Zhang Zhengdong, an expert on Europe and NATO, said that both Russia and the EU are interested in normalizing relations as the sanctions have caused heavy economic losses for the two sides.

However, Zhang said the improvement of relations is facing many obstacles given the two sides' fundamental disagreements on some key issues.

Moreover, improving relations with Russia is not something that can be decided independently by the EU, Zhang said, pointing to the fact that many European countries are engaged in close political cooperation with Washington and rely on the United States to guarantee their security. Endi