![“There have been times where [Russia slips] back into cold war thinking," said US President Barack Obama (left) on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno. Photo: AP](https://cdn.i-scmp.com/sites/default/files/styles/1200x800/public/2013/08/07/oabam.jpg?itok=v8f75EzP)
US President Barack Obama confirmed on Tuesday that he would go to Russia this fall for a G20 summit but said he was “disappointed” that Russia granted temporary asylum to former US spy agency contractor Edward Snowden.
Speaking on NBC’s The Tonight Show with host Jay Leno, Obama said Moscow sometimes slipped into a cold war mentality, despite being co-operative with the United States on some issues, including counter-terrorism efforts in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombing.
Obama was not asked and did not mention whether he would attend a separate meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin during his Russian trip. That meeting was put in question after Moscow rejected US pleas and granted Snowden a year’s asylum. The White House has said it is evaluating whether a one-on-one with Putin makes sense.
What I say to President Putin is, that’s the past and ... we’ve got to think about the future. And there’s no reason why we shouldn’t be able to co-operate more effectively than we do
Washington wants Snowden, who was in hiding in Hong Kong before flying to Moscow in June, to be sent home to face criminal charges including espionage for disclosing secret American internet and telephone surveillance programmes.
“There have been times where they slip back into cold war thinking and a cold war mentality,” Obama said of Russia.
“What I say to President Putin is, that’s the past and ... we’ve got to think about the future. And there’s no reason why we shouldn’t be able to co-operate more effectively than we do.”
During the interview, Obama also said the recent threat that caused the United States to close its embassies throughout the Middle East was significant.
“It’s significant enough that we’re taking every precaution,” Obama said.