Source http://www.aljazeera.com/news/europe/2014/11/russia-build-iran-nuclear-reactors-201411122531983715.html

My question to this forum is, is the US making a mistake in alienating Russia considering its strengthening ties with Iran, North Korea, China and don't forget Assad and if yes what do you think is the thought process or the end game of the US

This post was edited by ofthevoid on Nov 11 2014 10:17pm

Well the rest sans Israel is engaging with Iran in a more positive manner recently, so this isn't an egregious blow to West-Russia relations. It may even help the West in the long run if the reactors don't have any potential for enrichment. Which they likely won't.

Stronger relations with China don't mean much. Canada and South Korea in recent days have also done this with bilateral trade agreements. Russia is still pissed off at North Korea for their nuclear tests.

Good. Nuclear energy is an important step in global CO2 reduction.

Putin doesnt give a fuck about his relations to us why would we?

implying that it's not Russia that's doing the alienating with military activities on its' neighbours' soil and all

from what I've read on this it seems that everyone is in favor of this happening, Russia has the best chances of working a good deal especially in handling the waste.
I don't think there is any tension at all as far as this deal goes and to say that feelings about the Ukraine would somehow affect this I would say not to worry.

I would agree with this as long as these nuclear reactors are built for energy not to enrich. Still the question remains it seems that Russia has a growing influence/relations with countries that the west considers dangerous Iran, North Korea wouldn't it be wise for the west to bolster its ties with Russia and as a result actually make sure they have Russian pressure as well, in issues such as nuclear talks

edit: recently Putin visited N Korea and agreed on infrastructure projects that link the two countries so i doubt that russia or N Korea are really at odds.

This post was edited by ofthevoid on Nov 12 2014 11:48am

N. Korea recently released 2 US hostages, and they have had some talks with the South. So who knows??

They are. Putin did that as part of his spit in the face to the US. Russia needs to have not totally disastrous relations with the DPRK because they have important energy links with SK.

This post was edited by Caedus on Nov 12 2014 12:36pm

The United States and Saudi Arabia are aggressively targeting the price of oil in order to pressure the Russian and Iranian regimes (the United States being concerned about the former, the Sauds about the latter).

The United States would like an ally in Russia, but it doesn't need one. The current regime isn't compatible with American interests and aggressively pursues its own interests abroad. Given the nature of Russian interests it isn't hard to find regional allies desperate to oppose them.

America can afford to pursue its interests simultaneously in the Middle East and East Asia, but Europe needs to left to the Euros. Creating an aggressive and domineering Russia is crucial to keeping the Europeans and Russians at odds. Iran is desperate to end sanctions because their budget currently balances at $140 per barrel of oil (almost double the current price). Given that Saudi Arabia is intrinsically less powerful than Iran, it makes sense for America to ally itself with the Gulf in order to oppose Iranian influence in the Middle East. The Sauds need American support to maintain their tepid leadership role in the region, the Iranians could (theoretically) control much of the Middle East indirectly on their own (see the client states of Iraq and (now defunct) Syria.