Senator Hillary Clinton, a leading candidate of the Democratic Party for running at the US presidential election said that in her view, the United States should selectively approach the joint settlement with Russia of important international issues that are of major national importance for America. The US presidential election will be held next year.
Among issues on which Washington and Moscow could cooperate she noted the Iranian nuclear crisis settlement, ensuring security of storage of nuclear materials and weapons in Russia and former Soviet Union republics, as well as reaching consensus on the Kosovo status.
Clinton promised in a programme foreign political article published by the Foreign Affairs magazine's November-December issue that if she wins the struggle for the White House she would seek agreements on the substantial and controlled reduction of nuclear arsenals of Russia and the United States.
Clinton noted in the article, "To reassert our non-proliferation leadership, I will seek to negotiate an accord that substantially and verifiably reduces the US and Russian nuclear arsenals. This dramatic initiative would send a strong message of nuclear restraint to the world, while we retain enough strength to deter others from trying to match our arsenal. I will also seek Senate approval of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty by 2009, the tenth anniversary of the Senate's initial rejection of the agreement. This would enhance the United States' credibility when demanding that other nations refrain from testing. As president, I will support efforts to supplement the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. Establishing an international fuel bank that guaranteed secure access to nuclear fuel at reasonable prices would help limit the number of countries that pose proliferation risks."
"In the Senate, I have introduced legislation to accelerate and reinvigorate US efforts to prevent nuclear terrorism. As president, I will do everything in my power to ensure that nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons and the materials needed to make them are kept out of terrorists' hands. My first goal would be to remove all nuclear material from the world's most vulnerable nuclear sites and effectively secure the remainder during my first term in office.
Statesmanship is also necessary to engage countries that are not adversaries but that are challenging the United States on many fronts. Russian President Vladimir Putin has thwarted a carefully crafted UN plan that would have put Kosovo on a belated path to independence, attempted to use energy as a political weapon against Russia's neighbours and beyond, and tested the United States and Europe on a range of non-proliferation and arms reduction issues. Putin has also suppressed many of the freedoms won after the fall of communism, created a new class of oligarchs, and interfered deeply in the internal affairs of former Soviet republics," the article reads.
According to Clinton, "It is a mistake, however, to see Russia only as a threat. Putin has used Russia's energy wealth to expand the Russian economy, so that more ordinary Russians are enjoying a rising standard of living. We need to engage Russia selectively on issues of high national importance, such as thwarting Iran's nuclear ambitions, securing loose nuclear weapons in Russia and the former Soviet republics, and reaching a diplomatic solution in Kosovo. At the same time, we must make clear that our ability to view Russia as a genuine partner depends on whether Russia chooses to strengthen democracy or return to authoritarianism and regional interference." ( Itar-Tass )