Russia and Eurasia
Russian Foreign Minister: U.S. Mustn't "Frustrate" Russia
Russia's Foreign Minister, Igor Ivanov, told the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, in a March 2 interview with Franco Venturini, that America "must not create a frustrated Russia." Ivanov has been in Italy to prepare for Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi's visit to Moscow, scheduled for the beginning of April. He used the Corriere interview to send a message to Washington, opposing the war against Iraq, and listing issues which might jeopardize good relations between the U.S. and Russia.
On Georgia, Ivanov said that Russia does not oppose the presence there of U.S. military advisers, but "the active participation of American units would create worries not only on our part, but in Georgia as well.... We will see, but I believe we should speak clearly."
On Central Asia, Ivanov said: "Some people think that the U.S. wants to use the pretext of a war against terrorism to strengthen its positions in Central Asia, where there are strong geo-strategic and oil interests. Is this right? The answer must come from the United States."
On Iraq: "We are firmly against the use of force. There is no UN authorization, and repercussions would be incalculable throughout the Islamic world.... I had the impression that Berlusconi, too, is in favor of a political solution and not a military one."
On disarmament, Ivanov said he hopes that an agreement will be signed when President Bush visits Moscow at the end of May, "even if the American idea of keeping [deactivated] warheads in reserve, instead of destroying them, still represents a serious obstacle."
At the end of the interview, comes Ivanov's warning. Russian President Vladimir Putin's pro-Western choice is irreversible, says the Russian Foreign Minister, "for the simple reason that Putin meditated and made that choice well before Sept. 11. But, of course, the West must respond; it must not create a frustrated Russia."
Berezovsky's New Attacks on Putin--Implicating Him in 1999 Moscow Apartment Bombings
Boris Berezovsky, the exiled Russian gangster-oligarch, held a press conference in London March 6, charging that Russian President Vladimir Putin had advance knowledge of Federal Security Service involvement in four bombings that killed over 300 people in Moscow and two other Russian cities in the autumn of 1999. "At a minimum Vladimir Putin knew that the FSB was involved in the bombings in Moscow, Volgodonsk, and Ryazan," Berezovsky charged. But he failed to provide any evidence to back up the charges.
The press conference was also called to show a preview of 10 minutes of a documentary video that will soon be released by a French company, called "Assassination of Russia," which focusses on the failed bombing attempt in the Russian city of Ryazan on Sept. 22, 1999. The French film company, Transparences Productions, put the 52-minute documentary together from footage provided by NTV, formerly Berezovsky's private television network in Russia. The London event obviously signals a new offensive by the "Andropov Kindergarten" against the present Russian head of state.
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