Russia is ready to restore shaken relations with the United States, suggests developing cooperation with NATO and calls them for participation in preparation of a new treaty on European security. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said this on Saturday, when speaking in the Council on Foreign Relations.
Members of the authoritative American research organisation gathered to meet with the Russian leader. The meeting was chaired by ex-U.S. secretary of state Madeleine Albright as a confidant of president-elect Barack Obama.
Arriving there right after the G20 anti-crisis summit, Medvedev said he was pleased with the Washington summit results. A step was made to reform the world financial system, he noted. “We agreed on the declaration, main principles and rules,” he said.
“I cannot say that a new Bretton Woods is created, but certainly the first step is taken to set up such a system,” the president noted. After World War II, the basis of the present world financial system was formed at a conference in the American site of Bretton Woods.
Speaking about Russian-American relations, Medvedev said he viewed their improvement prospects with “moderate optimism”.
The Russian leader hopes that Obama will take steps to settle the problems accumulated in recent years in bilateral relations.
Medvedev described current relations with the United States as very rich in content, deep and at the same time not easy. There is no trust that is needed in Russian-American relations. So, Russian authorities place great hopes on Obama”s coming into power. It is possible to form a basis for Russian-U.S. relations as relations of partners, the Russian leader noted. He intends to meet with Obama as soon as possible. The meeting should be held as soon as possible, without delay and without any conditions, Medvedev noted. “Both he and I have such readiness,” he added.
Obama was not present in Washington during the Group of Twenty summit. He remained in Chicago, showing that he did not want to interfere in state affairs before taking office as president.
