Erin A. Kirk-Cuomo / DoD
The outgoing defense secretary tells Politico the U.S. will probably be unable to influence Russia's cyber hacking and its role in the Syrian civil war. Where the U.S. could best collaborate with Russia is on fighting North Korea's nuclear program and keeping weapons of mass destruction away from terrorists.
Compare and contrast:
Russia has made it progressively more difficult to align its interests with our interests. — Ash Carter to Politico
I've spoken to almost everybody, head of China, head of Russia, head of the UK, head of--I would say has to be close to a hundred different groups, and everybody is supportive. — Donald Trump to Axios