You Don't Want To Play Chess With Russians

Gorbachev's offer catches Reagan off guard

"In one stroke, Gorbachev had taken the arms talks public and implied that a summit was linked to progress in Geneva. The warm words from Washington, it seemed, had only brought another Soviet negotiating gambit. Gorbachev had timed the announcement for maximum effect.
(...)
The Administration reacted with annoyance."


Putin's offer catches Bush off guard

"Mr Putin explained he had proposed the use of a former Soviet radar base in Azerbaijan as an alternative to the controversial missile defence facilities the US is planning to build in central Europe.
The offer raised the prospect of unprecedented military co-operation between the US and Russia and provided a potential solution to their bitter dispute over missile defence. But after the two leaders finished their news conference, it was obvious the proposal had caught the US by surprise."