Diplomats in many corners of the world are puzzled by what appears to be a fundamental shift in Russia's foreign policies in recent months, from a strategy based on threat and intimidation to one of a low profile seeking friendship, especially with Western countries. Their consensus, however, is that this shift is only temporary and that Moscow will sooner or later return to its old tactics.

The first sign of such apparent change was noted in the aftermath of a tragic airplane crash that occurred on Russian soil April 10, killing Polish President Lech Kaczyinski and a number of other high government officials of Poland. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin personally led a special committee to investigate the cause of the crash, and accompanied Kaczyinski's body back to Warsaw.

The Polish population, who have been historically critical of Russia, are said to have been deeply moved by the presence of President Dmitry Medvedev at the state funeral for their late president while the leaders of many other countries were prevented from attending the ceremony by the Icelandic volcano, which disrupted air traffic across Europe.