U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton warned Thursday about a new effort by oppressive governments to “re-Sovietize” much of Eastern Europe and Central Asia, taking particular aim at Russia for its crackdown on democracy and human rights groups just hours ahead of critical talks with that country’s foreign minister.
Clinton’s meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will focus on the violence in Syria. They’ll be joined in Ireland’s capital by the U.N. mediator for the Arab country, Lakhdar Brahimi, in a three-way attempt to breathe new life into diplomatic efforts to stem the violence.