Obama:US wants prosperous Russia
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Daily News with wires
OluÅŸturulma Tarihi: Temmuz 08, 2009 00:00
MOSCOW - While polls show Russians are wary of Obama’s policies, the US leader reassures his desire for a strong and prosperous Russia during his visit to Moscow. He counters the deeply rooted belief that the two nations are adversaries
President Barack Obama, working to warm U.S. relations with Russia, met for the first time Tuesday with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and told college students that the two countries are not "destined to be antagonists."
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"The pursuit of power is no longer a zero-sum game," Obama said, speaking in the Russian capital to graduates of the New Economic School but also hoping to reach the whole nation. "Progress must be shared," The Associated Press quoted him as saying.
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Obama used his speech to further define his view of the United States' place in the world and, specifically, to argue that his country shares compelling interests with Russia.
"Let me be clear: America wants a strong, peaceful and prosperous Russia," he declared in his speech, not long after holding talks with Putin. "We recognize the future benefit that will come from a strong and vibrant Russia."
"That is why I have called for a 'reset' in relations between the United States and Russia," Obama said. "This must be more than a fresh start between the Kremlin and the White House, though that is important," he said according to an account by Bloomberg. "It must be a sustained effort among the American and Russian people to identify mutual interests and expand dialogue and cooperation that can pave the way to progress."
Meanwhile, he acknowledged the difficulties in forming a lasting partnership between the two former bitter enemies but said Russia and the United States now shared "common interests" on the main issues of the 21st century. The challenges facing the modern world "demand global partnership, and that partnership will be stronger if Russia occupies its rightful place as a great power," he said, according to an account by Agence France-Presse.
Obama's upbeat comments came on the second day of his summit in Russia, where polls show people are wary of the United States and taking a skeptical measure of Obama himself. Putin hosted Obama for talks at his home outside Moscow, where the atmosphere seemed cordial.
After his meeting with the Russian leader, he said: "I found him to be tough, smart, shrewd, very unsentimental, very pragmatic. And on areas where we disagree, like Georgia, I don't anticipate a meeting of the minds anytime soon."
In his speech, Obama said the interests of Russia and the United States generally coincide in five key areas: halting the spread of nuclear weapons, confronting violent extremists, ensuring economic prosperity, advancing the rights of people and fostering cooperation without jeopardizing sovereignty.
Obama supports NATO bid
of Ukraine and Georgia
But he also sprinkled in challenges to Russia on its own soil, particularly in the area of democracy. U.S. officials are wary of Russia's increasingly hard-line stand on dissent.
Obama also said Russia had to respect the sovereignty of its pro-Western ex-Soviet neighbors Georgia and Ukraine and acknowledged Russia's opposition to the U.S. plan for a missile defense shield in eastern Europe. He defended the steps nations must take to join NATO, adding, "NATO seeks collaboration with Russia, not confrontation."
The U.S. and Russia have plenty of significant differences, but Obama suggested one of the biggest problems is fixable: deeply rooted and harmful assumptions from another era. "There is the 20th century view that the United States and Russia are destined to be antagonists, and that a strong Russia or a strong America can only assert themselves in opposition to one another," Obama said. He dismissed that as inaccurate.
Meanwhile, Michelle Obama took time away from her husband's public diplomacy Tuesday to visit a Russian school for orphans and a nurse training college in Moscow.
Â
"The pursuit of power is no longer a zero-sum game," Obama said, speaking in the Russian capital to graduates of the New Economic School but also hoping to reach the whole nation. "Progress must be shared," The Associated Press quoted him as saying.
Â
Obama used his speech to further define his view of the United States' place in the world and, specifically, to argue that his country shares compelling interests with Russia.
"Let me be clear: America wants a strong, peaceful and prosperous Russia," he declared in his speech, not long after holding talks with Putin. "We recognize the future benefit that will come from a strong and vibrant Russia."
"That is why I have called for a 'reset' in relations between the United States and Russia," Obama said. "This must be more than a fresh start between the Kremlin and the White House, though that is important," he said according to an account by Bloomberg. "It must be a sustained effort among the American and Russian people to identify mutual interests and expand dialogue and cooperation that can pave the way to progress."
Meanwhile, he acknowledged the difficulties in forming a lasting partnership between the two former bitter enemies but said Russia and the United States now shared "common interests" on the main issues of the 21st century. The challenges facing the modern world "demand global partnership, and that partnership will be stronger if Russia occupies its rightful place as a great power," he said, according to an account by Agence France-Presse.
Obama's upbeat comments came on the second day of his summit in Russia, where polls show people are wary of the United States and taking a skeptical measure of Obama himself. Putin hosted Obama for talks at his home outside Moscow, where the atmosphere seemed cordial.
After his meeting with the Russian leader, he said: "I found him to be tough, smart, shrewd, very unsentimental, very pragmatic. And on areas where we disagree, like Georgia, I don't anticipate a meeting of the minds anytime soon."
In his speech, Obama said the interests of Russia and the United States generally coincide in five key areas: halting the spread of nuclear weapons, confronting violent extremists, ensuring economic prosperity, advancing the rights of people and fostering cooperation without jeopardizing sovereignty.
Obama supports NATO bid
of Ukraine and Georgia
But he also sprinkled in challenges to Russia on its own soil, particularly in the area of democracy. U.S. officials are wary of Russia's increasingly hard-line stand on dissent.
Obama also said Russia had to respect the sovereignty of its pro-Western ex-Soviet neighbors Georgia and Ukraine and acknowledged Russia's opposition to the U.S. plan for a missile defense shield in eastern Europe. He defended the steps nations must take to join NATO, adding, "NATO seeks collaboration with Russia, not confrontation."
The U.S. and Russia have plenty of significant differences, but Obama suggested one of the biggest problems is fixable: deeply rooted and harmful assumptions from another era. "There is the 20th century view that the United States and Russia are destined to be antagonists, and that a strong Russia or a strong America can only assert themselves in opposition to one another," Obama said. He dismissed that as inaccurate.
Meanwhile, Michelle Obama took time away from her husband's public diplomacy Tuesday to visit a Russian school for orphans and a nurse training college in Moscow.