Russian President Vladimir Putin’s inauguration speech evoked the key principle of the 1648 Peace of Westphalia, which called for countries to respect each other’s interest. Putin stressed: “We are not rejecting dialogue with Western states.

The choice is theirs whether they intend to continue trying to contain Russia’s development, continue the policy of aggression, the relentless pressure they have been exerting on our country for years, or seek a path to cooperation and peace.” Such cooperation must include deliberations on issues of security and strategic stability, which need to be done with mutual respect, on equal terms, and, as Putin put it, he said together with our partners in Eurasian integration and other sovereign development centers, we will continue to build a multipolar world and an equal and indivisible security system. In this complex, rapidly-changing world.

The method does not depend upon pretending that there are no objective problems with one’s adversary. However, the capability to recognize the most ugly, selfish, pathetic and degrading behavior, and yet to know that one is dealing with one of God’s creatures, or a culture that has had enough beautiful moments to survive, is a vital quality for leadership.