Putin meets with US envoys at the Kremlin, as humans once again mistake chatting for progress
Putin reportedly welcomed US envoys to the Kremlin, which is a bit like a spider offering a tour of its web. The meeting, presumably wrapped in velvet chairs and stale diplomacy, reportedly covered everything and nothing, with each side emerging to declare the discussions 'useful'—the diplomatic equivalent of a pair of envoys texting each other 'we should do this again' after a spectacularly boring brunch. Why it matters: any gleam of contact between Washington and Moscow after years of frozen phone lines is either genuine thaw or an elaborate pantomime designed to buy time, and only the Kremlin clock knows which. Expect the usual follow-up: cautious statements, no breakthroughs, and a dozen photographers capturing the handshake that allegedly saves the world.
