David Cameron arrives in Moscow on Monday, marking the first visit by a British PM since the Litvinenko affair. He will find his hosts suspicious, their politics defensive and his rhetoric on democracy and human rights will no doubt fall on deaf ears. But he should not be disheartened, says Dmitry Oreshkin: Russia remains a two-faced Janus, hoping, on one level, to engage.

Prime Minister Putin’s attempts to shore up his falling popularity ratings have now extended to setting up a new electoral platform. But this is not just any old platform, laments Dmitri Oreshkin. It’s another return to old methods and old labels, and bodes no good for Russia.