Clinton Meets with Russian Foreign Minister

In Washington, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov promised to look optimistically at Russian-American relations in the next two months.

In the last 10 days, Lavrov had many reasons to doubt that the discussions in Washington would go smoothly and, most importantly, productively. The statements that followed the negotiations have shown that some doubts still remain. All the same, the U.S. president’s visit to Moscow will take place in July. So, it will be necessary to fill it with legitimate content, otherwise, what kind of reset of mutual relations can they talk about?

The last press conference between Lavrov, Clinton and the journalists was held directly across from the State Department kitchen, where soup was being ladled and raspberries were being put on desserts for the premier diplomats of Russia and the U.S. However, the journalists were not concerned with the menu of the forthcoming dinner, but the possibility of getting into the “kitchen” of Russian-American negotiations. Unfortunately, while answering press questions, Lavrov and Clinton did not reveal the secrets of the diplomatic cuisine. The dishes and sauces they intend to prepare in the near future became clearer.

Lavrov’s trip to the U.S. was divided in two parts. First, he carried out negotiations with Clinton in Washington, followed by a visit with Barack Obama at the White House. He spent the second part of the trip in New York, where he met three Ministers of Foreign Affairs and the Secretary General of the United Nations Ban Ki-Moon, attended the UN Security Council session on the Middle East peace process (Russia now presides the Security Council) and the following press conference.

Would it be a lie to say that Lavrov was in a good mood in Washington? Just days earlier NATO began carrying out its training in Georgia, which Moscow considers a direct provocation. Simultaneously, there was another Russia-NATO scandal which according to a Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs source, could not have occurred without Washington’s participation. In Brussels, NATO deprived accreditation from two Russian diplomats, accusing them of espionage. Finally, the Russia-NATO session, scheduled for May 19 in Brussels as a result of Georgia’s attack on South Ossetia, was postponed by Russia’s initiative.

Many questions arose from that. For example, who would benefit from a continued pressure between Russia and the U.S.? There are no doubts that these types of questions were discussed by Lavrov and Clinton during their meeting in Washington. And it is obvious that he has received candid and encouraging enough answers. Otherwise, Lavrov would not have declared at the press conference, “I look forward to the following two months with optimism.”

What is to occur during these two months? If the negotiations do not stall again then a lot should happen. First of all, the negotiations are about the design of the new document that will replace the old strategic arms reduction treaty START, which is due to expire in December 2009.

The U.S. secretary of state is holding a strategic review, in other words, a foreign policy audit, which was greatly discussed in a meeting between Lavrov and Clinton. Moscow understandably relates to the desire of the new American administration to make things right, thing that were damaged by George W. Bush and his team. Nevertheless, the Russian side asks that the White House hurries up with its review. Even a weeklong delay in the negotiation process, under present conditions, can negatively impact international relations.

Let’s take the negotiations on new START, for example. Clinton is coming to Moscow in June. A month later, Obama visits. Experts will have to prepare concrete intermediary agreements for those visits. According to the Russian minister, both sides have coordinated the working schedules.

“Now, we will demand the best performance from our employees,” he added. Clinton noted, “We bear the responsibility of executing the mission of our presidents.”

The current situation cannot be called critical. With a little time left, both sides can still reach the desired results. There is already an example of how American and Russian diplomats can make mutually advantageous decisions in the short period of time. Lavrov noted that during the first meeting between Russia’s Dmitry Medvedev and Obama in London, both parties were able to prepare plans for the agreements “in the shortest period of time.”

By the way

Following the session of the UN Security Council on the Middle East peace process, the Chairman’s report was accepted, a report prepared by the Russian diplomats. Lavrov stated, “But as of now there is an alarming negotiation vacuum … The main thing in these conditions is a swift resumption of talks between Israel and the Palestinians. It is crucial that political process should not be returned to the zero mark …” Lavrov believes that the following step should be the Moscow Conference on the Middle East, the date of which has not been set yet.