All Right, "ITS," Be Careful What You Refer To

       A problem has been showing up more often in the L.A. Times:  the word "its" appearing without a clear and definite referent.  In an article with the headline "Putin's goal:  R-E-S-P-E-C-T," this sub-headline follows:

"Russia's leader wants new U.S. administration to recognize its might"

       What is the referent for "its"?  The grammatical expectation is that the immediately preceding noun be what "its" refers to.   Now that doesn't work with "administration" nor "U.S." nor "leader," which leaves "Russia's."

       But the writer of the sub-headline didn't want the whole word, just "Russia" to be the understood referent for "its."  You can't have a word with an apostrophe "s" be the antecedent noun for the possessive "its."

       This is at best awkward, at least confusing, and plain grammatically wrong.