Since the collapse of the old Soviet Union, Russia has cut a substantially diminished figure on the international stage.
The breakup, back in 1991, of what US President Ronald Reagan once dubbed an “evil empire” left the Kremlin with less territory, less financial muscle and less influence around the globe.
But Russia retained its clout in one crucial area.
Its continued status as a nuclear superpower, on a roughly equal footing with the United States, guaranteed even a weakened Moscow a place at the top table of international diplomacy.
At nuclear summits, the Kremlin’s leader could grandly sit across from the incumbent in the White House – just like…