VILLIFYING RUSSIA. The story is buried in the lower-right hand corner of page A13 in The Washington Post, but the fact that Russia has halted delivery of nuclear fuel to Iran strikes me as a relatively big deal. The ostensible reason is a monthly payment that Russia says Iran didn't make, and that Iran says it did (I can't quite tell, but it appears that Iran tried to pay in Euros, and Russia wasn't having it). The real reason, as The Post reports, is that, "underlying the financial dispute appears to be increasing Russian hostility to Iran's suspected desire to build nuclear weapons and its flouting of international demands that it stop the enrichment of uranium and cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency." That's significant. Serious Russian pressure on Iran could have a large impact on the country's willingness to engage in further brinksmanship. And Russia's further warned, "We do not need a nuclear Iran or an Iran with the potential to create [nukes]. We will not play any anti-U.S. games with [Iran[, should [they] decide against giving any answers to the IAEA's questions. Let them answer for themselves." But I want to make a point about placement, and the narratives The Post is trying to promote. Because there are two more Russia stories in the newspaper today, one on the front page. The front-pager documents government attempts to exert more control over the Russian Academy of Sciences. In other words, Putin is a dictatorial autocrat. And on A12, there's a story about the large lead enjoyed by Putin's political party and the government's increased attempts to create more internal political dialogue. Let's recap: There are three Russia stories in today's paper. The one painting Putin as an authoritarian dictator in on A1. The story suggesting the country is tentatively moving towards internal political reforms is on A12. And the reporting on Russia's apparent willingness to pressure Iran on the nuclear issue -- which is, of course, a top priority of America's -- is on A13. So why is the Washington Post straining to paint such a dark picture of Russia, and burying the stories that conflict with the narrative, even as they have more relevance to American priorities? --Ezra Klein
