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Report: US-Russia Relations at "Dramatic Turning Point"
The United States and Russia have a "historic opportunity" to create a fundamentally new bilateral relationship, moving beyond the principles of nuclear deterrence and towards deeper collaboration on political, economic and security issues, according to a report issued Monday by the US East-West Institute's Bipartisan Task Force.
The Task Force noted that US President George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin have a unique opportunity to accelerate bilateral dialogue and cooperation on a wide range of issues of importance to both countries, starting as early as this week's G-8 summit in Italy and Putin's upcoming visit to the United States.
The report recommends that Bush and Putin advance a dialogue on the U.S.-Russian security relationship that replaces the fatalistic logic of mutual assured destruction, and encourages both nations to strive for an interim nuclear relationship that dramatically lowers levels of offensive weapons and defensive systems.
The Task Force also noted that Putin's ambitious political and economic reform agenda, if implemented in ways consistent with democratic and free market values, has the potential to accelerate Russia's integration with global institutions and markets.
The report recommends the United States engage Russia in ways that facilitate its reform process and accession to global institutions like the World Trade Organization (WTO).
The Task Force also recommends the United States expand investments in programs that expose Russians to international business practices, including an increase in exchanges that introduce Russian lawmakers, journalists, educators and businessmen to their counterparts in the United States.
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