US Archives: In 1992, Boris Yeltsin Failed to Persuade George W. Bush to Move From Russian-US Friendship to Real Cooperation

15
US Archives: In 1992, Boris Yeltsin Failed to Persuade George W. Bush to Move From Russian-US Friendship to Real Cooperation

As follows from the declassified American archives of talks between the first President of the Russian Federation Boris Yeltsin and his American counterpart George W. Bush, Washington in the 1990s, after the collapse of the USSR, did not even seek to see an ally in Moscow. This is evidenced by excerpts from Yeltsin's dialogue with the US President and then US Secretary of State James Baker.

Thus, discussing the draft joint statement following the meeting of the two presidents in 1992, Boris Yeltsin remarked:



Nowhere does it say that we are no longer adversaries and are moving towards becoming allies.

To which the head of the State Department, Baker, tried to object, drawing attention to the presence of the word "friendship" in the document.

Yeltsin continued to insist that such a wording was too vague, more specifics were needed about further relations between Russia and the United States.

No no. We must say that we are moving from the stage of confrontation to alliance. This is a new quality.

the Russian president retorted, insisting that "relationships of deep mutual trust and alliance" should be established between the two countries.

Then the head of the White House intervened in the discussion, trying to explain that these were just “transitional expressions”.

We use transitive expressions because we don't want to pretend that all our problems have been solved.

- Bush literally got out.

Judging by the further development of events, Yeltsin then failed to stand his ground, and the declarative “friendship” between the two countries gradually developed into a direct confrontation between the United States and Western allies with Russia, the climax of which was the expansion of NATO to the east and the military conflict in Ukraine.

According to archival documents, after the collapse of the USSR, Washington focused on controlling nuclear weapons in the former Soviet republics while pushing for radical economic reforms. Earlier, a former economic adviser under Mikhail Gorbachev and Boris Yeltsin, Jeffrey Sachs, said he tried to convince the US leadership to help Russia after the collapse of the USSR. But the White House turned him down because the United States wanted to remain the world's only superpower. What Washington managed to achieve for a while. Now Russia is forced to defend its interests on the battlefield and correct the fatal mistakes made by politicians at the end of the last century.
  • Alexander Grigoryev
  • https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons_President_George_H._W._Bush_and_Russian_President_Boris_Yeltsin
Our news channels

Subscribe and stay up to date with the latest news and the most important events of the day.

15 comments
Information
Dear reader, to leave comments on the publication, you must sign in.
  1. +4
    2 February 2023 10: 54
    In 1992, Boris Yeltsin failed to convince George W. Bush to move from friendship between Russia and the United States to real cooperation.
    The article has some kind of title ... What kind of "cooperation" can we talk about if one was not going to "cooperate", and the other was not going to "persuade"? What kind of secret information has been lying in the "archives" for so many years?
    One was not able to digest the "happiness" of the imperial mantle that suddenly fell on him, the second was stunned by the sudden "gift" - the eternal enemy and the enemy himself collapsed. Just gotta get it. How can you not be stunned with happiness?

    The idol of communism is defeated...
    pancake!...
    1. +7
      2 February 2023 11: 05
      For the United States, the collapse of the USSR turned out to be a victory, and therefore Russia, as a fragment of a former powerful state, in the eyes of the United States was considered only as part of a "defeated enemy" and, therefore, what kind of friendship could there be between the winner and the vanquished.

      Yeltsin, like Gorbachev, only had enough brains for destruction, not creation, and a powerful country was at the mercy of the losers from politics, which the Anglo-Saxons took advantage of (but this formulation of the activities of the named losers will not be reflected in the new Russian history textbook). hi
      1. 0
        2 February 2023 13: 13
        hi!
        Quote: credo
        For the United States, the collapse of the USSR was a victory

        This is what they think.
        Hitler also printed invitations to the parade on Red Square.
        And the Parade was, but not the same.

        And I, for example, consider 1991 and the 90s as a whole not as the defeat of Russia, but as Stalingrad.
        Now it's time to go back to the West.
        From the border we spun the Earth back -
        It was a matter of first.
        But our battalion commander twisted it back,
        Having kicked off from the Urals.

        Finally, we were ordered to advance,
        To take away our spans and crumbs,
        But we remember how the sun went back
        And almost went in the east.

        Far from victory. Highly.
        But she will.
  2. 0
    2 February 2023 10: 58
    We use transitive expressions because we don't want to pretend that all our problems have been solved.
    - Bush literally got out.

    What nafig got out? He directly told the wino - we are still on different sides of the front - we do not have an alliance, we have problems, and we will solve them. What kind of alliance if your ally openly says, "relationship with you is a problem for me"
  3. +2
    2 February 2023 11: 08
    Yeltsin managed to give the country into the hands of thieves and at the same time become a people's favorite. To do this, little is needed: just issue vouchers and piss on an airplane wheel under TV cameras and conduct a “kalinka-raspberry” at the Berlin airport.

    But to compete with Bush, the mind was not enough ......
    1. 0
      2 February 2023 12: 28
      He was a favorite in 1988-1991, before the collapse of the USSR. And since 1992, and especially since 1993-1994, he began to quickly lose popularity. I never voted for Yeltsin, neither he himself as a person, nor his views were ever to my liking. But I admit. that in a certain period of time he enjoyed considerable popularity. Even in the mid-second half of the 90s, a smaller, but still quite significant part of our citizens treated him with some sympathy. Although it has decreased significantly compared to the end of the 80s.
  4. 0
    2 February 2023 11: 09
    burdock arrived borka burdock reception congressmen))))))))
  5. +2
    2 February 2023 11: 10
    What friendship with an existential threat? Have you lost your mind? the Americans robustly knocked over the Russian "fool Vanka", in the person of Misha and Boris. Have you seen movies about the wild west? As long as the latest and lousy cowboy has a Smith & Wesson, then he is dangerous ...
  6. -7
    2 February 2023 11: 20
    Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin is the best leader in post-Soviet Russia. Who agrees - put a plus. Who does not agree - put a minus. Only plus or minus. Swear words are not needed. Firstly, they will be banned, and secondly, there are no such words that would fully describe his work in this direction. You have to use multi-part phrases.
  7. 0
    2 February 2023 11: 33
    https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/briefing-book/russia-programs/2023-01-30/first-months-us-relations-new-russia-1992

    If anyone is interested.
  8. +1
    2 February 2023 11: 41
    Yeltsin and his team drank and sold everything they could get their hands on. What kind of agreements with the penguins are we talking about. Some bows from the drunk.
  9. for
    -1
    2 February 2023 11: 45
    How is it that balabol Gorbachev and the drunk Yeltsin were able to destroy such a country, and such a genius (KGB) Putin could not protect it.
  10. +2
    2 February 2023 11: 48
    What kind of "real collaboration" can there be with a six drunk pissing on the wheel of a liner?
    It is bitter to realize, but Gorbachev and EBN in power is the result of genuine democracy and social elevators. Gorbachev (both grandfathers were repressed) started with an ordinary combine operator, EBN is the son of a dispossessed.
  11. 0
    2 February 2023 16: 48
    One sold everything, the second drank everything.
    I have everything on the topic.
  12. 0
    4 February 2023 14: 22
    move from friendship between Russia and the United States to real cooperation

    And when was it that the winner or the master was friends with the loser or the servant

"Right Sector" (banned in Russia), "Ukrainian Insurgent Army" (UPA) (banned in Russia), ISIS (banned in Russia), "Jabhat Fatah al-Sham" formerly "Jabhat al-Nusra" (banned in Russia) , Taliban (banned in Russia), Al-Qaeda (banned in Russia), Anti-Corruption Foundation (banned in Russia), Navalny Headquarters (banned in Russia), Facebook (banned in Russia), Instagram (banned in Russia), Meta (banned in Russia), Misanthropic Division (banned in Russia), Azov (banned in Russia), Muslim Brotherhood (banned in Russia), Aum Shinrikyo (banned in Russia), AUE (banned in Russia), UNA-UNSO (banned in Russia), Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People (banned in Russia), Legion “Freedom of Russia” (armed formation, recognized as terrorist in the Russian Federation and banned)

“Non-profit organizations, unregistered public associations or individuals performing the functions of a foreign agent,” as well as media outlets performing the functions of a foreign agent: “Medusa”; "Voice of America"; "Realities"; "Present time"; "Radio Freedom"; Ponomarev; Savitskaya; Markelov; Kamalyagin; Apakhonchich; Makarevich; Dud; Gordon; Zhdanov; Medvedev; Fedorov; "Owl"; "Alliance of Doctors"; "RKK" "Levada Center"; "Memorial"; "Voice"; "Person and law"; "Rain"; "Mediazone"; "Deutsche Welle"; QMS "Caucasian Knot"; "Insider"; "New Newspaper"