Translated material
Anomaly with emotions
Ex-ambassadors against the US-Russian crisis
Former Russian ambassadors in Washington and American ambassadors in Moscow are concerned that " emotional rhetoric " has replaced "productive analysis of the common interests between the United States and the Russian Federation in the 21st century." In a joint statement, they called on the authorities of both countries to make immediate efforts to “relieve tensions around the unstable situation in the Caucasus” and “be careful in actions that could exacerbate an already tense atmosphere.”Four Americans took part in a two-day meeting of veterans of the diplomatic front, held recently in the US capital: Arthur Hartman (ambassador in Moscow from 1981 to 1987), Jack Matlock (1987-1991), Thomas Pickering (1993-1996) and James Collins (1996--2001). Russia was represented by two ambassadors from the decline of the USSR: Yuri Dubinin (1986-1990) and Alexander Bessmertnykh (1990-1991), who immediately became the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Soviet Union.
Many of the participants experienced the Cold War period and knew how to negotiate in the conditions of intense confrontation between the then superpowers. As Mr. Dubinin said at a meeting with the public and the press, "the current state of relations between the United States and Russia is an anomaly."
Jack Matlock, now a lecturer at Columbia University in New York, believes it is wrong that both countries have allowed each other to be drawn into discussions on private issues and turned off the “main road” of further nuclear arms reduction: “It is stupid, unproductive and unaffordable to sit on such mountains of nuclear weapons. What example are we setting for other countries? And most importantly - for what? It’s clear that we will never use nuclear weapons against each other, we are not members of a suicide club.”
The cooling between Moscow and Washington, Mr. Matlock believes, goes some way to explaining the apparent one-sidedness of the American press in covering the recent conflict in the Caucasus. For the first week and a half, the ex-ambassador pointed out, it was impossible to find out from the American media that Georgia was the first to attack, that civilians and peacekeepers were killed - not to mention the fact that the origins of the conflict go back to the collapse of the USSR and that in those years it was initiated by Georgia.
The former ambassadors agreed that “Washington and Moscow must create an advanced institutional system for consultations and negotiations on bilateral relations,” which, based on their experience, “will require the attention and support of the presidents of both countries.” It is also necessary to expand public contacts between the two countries with the participation of scientists and experts, former government officials, businessmen and all other citizens who want to contribute to the formation of a new agenda for Russia and the United States. “In our discussions we tried to find ways out of the crisis. The overall trend was positive. We found a style and tone that could become an example for subsequent discussions,” noted Alexander Bessmertnykh.
When asked by Vremya Novostei whether the recommendations of the ambassadorial meeting would be passed on to the State Department and the White House, James Collins, now director of Russian and Asian programs at the Carnegie Endowment in Washington, replied: “Representatives of the State Department and some other federal agencies were already present at hall There are many other ways to convey the views of respected diplomats to the administration.”