At Sochi, a High Bar for Putin

Sochi’s message: Russia is a status quo power, while the United States is a revisionist power seeking to use the principles of democracy promotion and humanitarian intervention to force change on other governments around the world — including on Russia’s borders and in Russia itself. Internationally, this self-image translates into support for absolute sovereignty and not meddling in other countries’ domestic politics — at least in principle, if not in practice, when it comes to its own nearest neighbors, like Ukraine and Georgia.

.. Recently, President Putin asserted that Western Christianity had lost its moral compass by supporting L.G.B.T. rights and that the Russian Orthodox Church was the true guardian of Christian values. And, he added, these values are also compatible with traditional Islamic values — an important message in a country where ethnic and religious tensions are on the rise.