American expert: Washington can't do without Moscow
Jeffrey Mankoff, a freelancer in the Russia and Eurasia program at the US Center for Strategic and International Studies and a visiting researcher at Columbia University in New York, published an article entitled “What Putin’s Return means to Washington” in the National Interest magazine.In the article, the expert reflects on the prospects of Russian-American relations after the return of Vladimir Putin to the presidency of the Russian Federation.
The author writes that, despite all disagreements with Moscow, "Washington has the opportunity to maintain good and mutually beneficial relations with Russia."
"To do this, it is necessary to develop a platform that will focus on the mutual interests of the parties and will help bring the relationship out of the impasse related to issues such as missile defense and Russia's domestic policy," Mankoff said.
In his opinion, the preservation and improvement of bilateral cooperation looks particularly relevant against the background of statements by the American President Barack Obama, who promised to withdraw the American military contingent from Afghanistan by 2014.
"Since on the eve of 2014, the United States is accelerating the withdrawal of its troops from Afghanistan, for starters, America and Russia should focus on regional security in Afghanistan and Central Asia," the expert writes.
Mankoff believes that the key moment in the normalization of relations is a change in the American manner of conducting a dialogue with Moscow.
"The harshness of Putin’s election rhetoric should not overshadow the fact that he has long recognized the importance of good relations with the United States and believes that supporting them is in Russia's national interests if Washington is ready to treat Moscow as an equal partner (which he Putin often does not). "
“Against the background of growing instability in the Middle East, the weakening of the European Union and the difficulties of strategic reorientation to the Asian direction, the United States needs productive - in a broad sense - relations with Russia - which in turn means exactly the kind of cooperation Putin offers,” he said. political scientist.
Commenting on the relations between Russia and the United States in a shorter term, the author notes that "Washington and Moscow seriously need to cooperate in Afghanistan and in the neighboring countries of Central Asia." The expert recalled that Russia is among the key partners of the United States in the Northern Distribution Network - the supply route of the international coalition in Afghanistan.
"The timeline (the withdrawal of NATO troops - ed.) Is unlikely to be reviewed by the Obama administration, but it should begin an intensive dialogue with the Russians about regional security during and after leaving. The United States is also interested in Central Asia not becoming a source of radicalism and instability, however, after leaving Afghanistan, they will have less opportunity to influence events, which is why Washington needs to work out a regional security concept after 2014 with Moscow. Central Asia’s security may allow the parties to move away from counterproductive conflicts over missile defense or the problems of the Middle East, which have occupied a key place in relations between Russia and the United States for too long, ”Mankoff believes.
According to the author, the American leadership should have no illusions about cooperation with Russia under Vladimir Putin, because "interaction with it will not be based on common values, but on the pursuit of common interests in the areas in which they exist."
In conclusion, Jeffrey Mankoff notes that "the United States will have to work with the Russian government, which is, and not with the one that America would like."
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