Kindgo
Advanced Member
Member # 2
|
posted
web page
Iranian President Mohammad Khatami, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin embrace during a summit of Caspian Sea leaders in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, in April.
Ties with Iran, Iraq and North Korea cause friction with U.S.
ANALYSIS
By Thomas Bonifield
NBC NEWS
MOSCOW, Aug. 23 — Iran, Iraq and North Korea are three nations collectively known in the parlance of the Bush administration as the “axis of evil.” But that’s not the way they see it in Russia, where the three countries have been getting something of the red-carpet treatment over the last several weeks.
NORTH KOREA’S Kim Jong Il is the latest recipient of a warm Russian welcome. The normally reclusive leader is in the midst of a tour by train of Russia’s Far East. The visit — Kim’s second to Russia in as many years — is being billed as an effort to strengthen economic ties. On Friday, Kim topped off his visit by meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Vladivostok.
A visit this week by Iran’s deputy foreign minister and the announcement of a major economic deal with Iraq have also served to underscore the Kremlin’s ties with Bush’s “axis of evil.”
Russia’s dealings with North Korea, Iraq and Iran are a point of friction between Moscow and Washington, despite a relationship that has otherwise grown stronger through the war against terrorism and what appears to be a genuine friendship between Putin and President Bush.
But while both nations are united in the anti-terror fight — America is currently pitted against al-Qaida and Russia against Chechen separatists — their cooperation has limits, and North Korea, Iran and Iraq may well lay beyond those geopolitical boundaries.
News on Kim Jong Il's Russia visit
SEEKING PARTNERS ELSEWHERE
Political analyst Victor Kremenyuk of Russia’s USA-Canada Institute says a lack of U.S. initiative in strengthening economic ties with Russia is forcing Putin to look elsewhere.
“From the very beginning, in his first meeting with Bush (in June 2001), Putin spoke repeatedly about the importance of the economic component of the relationship. Since then the United States has done virtually nothing. So Russia is seeking out partners — where? In Iran and in Iraq.”
In addition to the current visit of the North Korean leader, Russia has acknowledged plans for a $40 billion economic cooperation agreement with Iraq and announced a deal to build five nuclear reactors in Iran. While Russia back-tracked on that Iraq deal, saying after strong U.S. criticism that the project would depend on political considerations, it is continuing construction of a reactor in Bushehr on Iran’s Persian Gulf coast. Russia continues to dismiss American claims that Iran could use the facility as a vehicle to obtain nuclear weapons.
WASHINGTON’S IRE
The Kremlin’s agreement with Iraq, which involves the development of energy resources, transportation and agriculture, has drawn less of an outcry in Washington than one might expect. Both the Russians and the Iraqis have said the deal will not violate the U.N. sanctions imposed on Baghdad after the 1991 Gulf War. Privately, U.S. officials say the Bush administration is furious over the deal. But for now Washington, at least publicly, appears to be buying Moscow’s assurances. “Obviously, we would expect that anything would be consistent with U.N. Security Council resolutions,” State Department spokesman Philip Reeker said last week.
However, that does not mean Russia and the United States see eye to eye on Iraq or Saddam Hussein. While debate heats up in Washington over Bush’s call for Saddam’s ouster, the prospect of American-led military intervention in Iraq remains a non-starter in Russia. According to Vyacheslav Nikonov, head of the Moscow-based think tank Politika, opposition crosses the political spectrum. “Putin will definitely not support the military operation. He would not risk his relationship — Russia’s relationship — with the Muslim world,” Nikonov said.
Beyond the pending $40 billion deal with Iraq, which could be signed as early as next month, analysts say Putin has to think about other economic interests in the Persian Gulf state. They include some $8 billion in Soviet-era debt that Iraq owes Russia, as well as potentially lucrative petroleum contracts signed between the Iraqis and Russian oil companies; those deals are on hold because of the economic sanctions.
KREMLIN WATCHES BOTTOM LINE
Some analysts believe that if a U.S. invasion of Iraq became inevitable, the Russians would seek assurances that their financial interests would be protected. And Nikonov thinks that while Russia wouldn’t support American intervention, it won’t turn its back on the United States either.
“Russia will not leave the anti-terrorist coalition after the Americans attack Iraq. Russia is interested in economic, political and military cooperation with the United States and will not risk this relationship because of the Iraqi government,” Nikonov said.
But thorny issues remain, like the so-called “axis of evil,” on which Russia and the United States do not agree. Each country’s vigorous pursuit of its own geopolitical interests — and Russian public opinion, which won’t stand for pandering to Washington — will see to that, says analyst Kremenyuk. “Right now, Putin is attempting to correct this pro-American leaning of his policies for which he could and would be criticized,” he said.
Thomas Bonifield is NBC’s Moscow bureau chief.
--------------------
God bless,
Kindgo
Inside the will of God there is no failure. Outside the will of God there is no success.
Posts: 4320 | From: Sunny Florida | Registered: Jun 2002
| IP: Logged | 
|
Printer-friendly view of this topic
