On June 16th, The German Marshall Fund (GMF) hosted a panel discussion entitled U.S.-Russia Relations under the Obama Administration featuring Philip Gordon, Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs at the U.S. Department of State, and David J. Kramer, senior transatlantic fellow at GMF. The discussion was moderated by GMF Executive Vice President Karen Donfried.

Following welcoming remarks from Donfried, both speakers presented their thoughts on U.S.-Russia relations under the current Administration.

Gordon outlined positive signs of progress and development in U.S.-Russia relations since the Obama Administration came into office, not least creation of a new, more positive atmosphere in the U.S.-Russia relationship which is vital for the security of the United States and the world. Eighteen months on, he argued, the “reset” has helped put the relationship with Russia on a sounder footing and led to practical cooperation in concrete areas, from arms control and trade to Afghanistan and the Middle East, though many differences still remain. 

Gordon acknowledged that relations between the U.S. and Russia following the August 2008 Georgian-Russian conflict were arguably at their lowest level since the end of the Cold War.  That has changed.  “We have a lot of differences with Russia, but also lots of common interests and we are working together to achieve them, “said Mr. Gordon.  Deterioration in relations with Russia is in no one’s interest, especially not in the interest of European security.  Over the past 18 months, the Administration has yielded considerable results on various national security matters, but still has a lot more to do, Gordon argued.

Gordon indicated that the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) that President Obama and President Medvedev signed in April was not easy but advances the interests of both nations.  Similarly, he noted how they had reached a rather difficult agreement on expanding the Northern Distribution Network to Afghanistan through Russian territory.   He also elaborated on missile defense, noting that it it uses proven and new technology, covers more of Europe and is therefore, more responsive to the current and future security threats the continent faces.  The Obama Administration’s missile defense plans pose no threat to Russia’s deterrent ability, he said.

Gordon also touched upon the Binational Presidential Commission, with its 16 working groups, designed to promote broader cooperation in a more structured way on a range of issues including security, countering terrorism, economics, people-to-people exchanges, and the environment.

Contrary to the claims of some critics that the U.S. has not developed a coherent policy toward other countries in the region and that the results of the “reset” fall short of Administration claims, Gordon stated that the United States has pursued this cooperation with Russia, while continuing to underscore U.S. values, standing firmly by friends and  allies and defending their sovereignty, territorial integrity and basic right to choose their own alliances.  He rejected the argument that the U.S. is strengthening relations with Russia at the expense of Georgia.  Gordon stressed that better U.S.-Russia relations mean stronger European security for all.   He emphasized the administration’s unyielding support for Georgia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty and noted that the U.S. has committed one billion dollars in assistance to Georgia to aid in its reconstruction.  He also mentioned that the U.S. is committed to promoting human rights, democracy, and rule of law in Russia and that these issues are raised in meetings at all levels with Russian officials.

Kramer began his remarks by noting that the Bush Administration in April 2008 also tried to repair relations with Moscow but that that effort collapsed after Russia invaded Georgia in August that year.  Still, the Obama-Medvedev joint statement from the April 2009 London meeting was eerily similar to the framework declaration that Bush and Vladimir Putin issued a year before.  Kramer admitted that the relationship between Obama and Medvedev was improved over the Bush-Putin relationship and that trying to get Russia on board to work with us on important national security issues including arms control, Iran and most recently on the logistical route to Afghanistan made certain sense.  He noted some success but worried that the Administration was overselling the progress that has been made, noting that Russia after all voted three times before for an Iran resolution at the UN. 

On the recently “leaked” foreign policy doctrine which some observers have viewed positively, Kramer noted that people need to read it before coming to such conclusions, for much in it was disturbing.  This would include its calls for continuing relations with Iran, the junta in Burma, and consolidating Russia’s position in its neighborhood.  On the situation in Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan, Kramer noted that the U.S. cannot compete with Russia in terms of proximity and history but that we have not done a good job of “staying in the game.”  He urged a strengthening in the U.S. position on Georgia and a stronger stand on the issue of NATO member states’ arms sales to Russia (citing the case of the possible French sale of the Mistral).   

Kramer also argued that Russia’s interest in gaining U.S. support for modernization is an agenda that Russia wants but that we should use that as a point of leverage to “pressure on political modernization including fundamental freedoms, freedom of press and speech as well as overall democracy. “

During Q&A, Gordon stressed that the U.S. is “committed to the defense of NATO allies. “We do think we have a better relationship with Russia,” he said.  “We don’t see the relationship in zero-sum terms, We want to reassure allies that they have nothing to worry about.”…. He noted that the Russian proposal for a new treaty on European security was not necessary.  “The institutions already exist for European security such as NATO, the OSCE and the NATO-Russia Council.  We need to abide by the principles that exist and make better use of the institutions that exist.” As an example, he pointed out that the Georgia war was not because of the lack of a treaty but for plenty of other reasons.

On Iran, Gordon argued that there has been a change in Russian thinking about Iran, caused in part by the revelation of the secret nuclear facility last fall.  Russia is not interested in an Iran with nuclear weapons and, therefore, there has been a change in the way they talk about Iran and what they are prepared to do .  Kramer argued that while the “reset” might have created a more conducive environment to work with Russia on Iran, that  Russia’s support for the UN resolution was, in larger part, driven closer to the US position by Iranian policy and rhetoric., Clarifying a point on UN Resolution 1929,  the S-300 air-defense missile and whether Russia would deliver them to Iran, Gordon acknowledged that while S-300 missiles are not on the list of arms embargoed under the resolution, Russia seems to have decided not to transfer them in the spirit of the resolution.  Kramer suggested pressing President Medvedev during his visit next week in Washington for clarity on this issue.  Both speakers agreed on the importance of strengthening U.S.-Russia trade relations, and Gordon indicated that the WTO can play a significant role in shaping the economic relations between the two countries.  Kramer pointed out, however, that it is not the fault of the U.S. that Russia is not in the WTO even though Russia officials like to blame Washington; the fault lies with Putin and his decision last summer to join together with Kazakhstan and Belarus. 

Gordon concluded that there is still more work to do to advance the relationship with Russia on  security, economic, and strategic issues.. However, he feels that the Administration has made a number of concrete achievements with Russia, has remained committed to allies and principals and has seen substantial progress in creating a more stable European security environment as a whole.

Philip H. Gordon's remarks as prepared are available here.

An audio recording of the event is available here.

A video recording of the event is available here.