Warning to Russia blunted by US fears of return to Cold War frostiness
Moscow's recent invasion of Georgia, Dr Rice (seen here) said, was part of a pattern that included its use of oil and natural gas as a political weapon and a threat to target peaceful nations with nuclear weapons. -- PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
LONDON: In unusually tough remarks, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has warned Russia that it is buying a one-way ticket to insignificance.
But what was touted by the State Department as an important policy speech was notable for being strong in rhetoric with little bite.
'DARK TURN'
'The picture emerging from this pattern of behaviour is that of a Russia increasingly authoritarian at home and aggressive abroad.'
Significantly too, on the same day that Dr Rice issued her warning to Moscow, US Defence Secretary Robert Gates urged ministers of a divided Nato gathered in London to adopt a cautious approach that would reassure newer members along Russia's border without provoking hostilities.
In her first major address on Russia since its incursion into Georgia last month, Dr Rice said Moscow had taken a 'dark turn' that left its global standing worse than at any time since 1991, when it emerged from the fall of the Soviet Union.
Moscow's recent invasion of Georgia, she said, was part of a pattern that included its use of oil and natural gas as a political weapon and a threat to target peaceful nations with nuclear weapons.
'The picture emerging from this pattern of behaviour is that of a Russia increasingly authoritarian at home and aggressive abroad,' she said at the German Marshall Fund on Thursday.
The US and Europe must not allow Russian actions in Georgia to achieve any benefit, she said. 'Our strategic goal is to make it clear to Russia's leaders that their choices are putting Russia on a one-way path to self-imposed isolation and international irrelevance.'
For all of her strong words, the Bush administration is looking for responses to Russia's unapologetic invasion of its smaller neighbour, Georgia.
The fact that Dr Rice, a specialist on the former Soviet Union, felt compelled to give what was billed as a significant policy summation suggested Russia is far from irrelevant on the world stage and that Washington fears a return to Cold War frostiness.
With time running out on an administration that is dependent on Moscow's support for efforts to deal with nuclear programmes in Iran and North Korea as well as counter-terror and the Middle East peace process, Dr Rice's tough talk was blunted by the lack of concrete measures Washington will take to punish Russia.
In fact, she noted numerous areas where continued US-Russian cooperation is critical and hoped that the Kremlin would change.
On relations with the US, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev had also said that they remained a priority for Russia. While there had been 'quite a few acute situations', he said, 'common sense, pragmatism and respect for each other's interests always prevailed in the end'.
But yesterday, he made clear that Russia would not yield to Western pressure or be pushed into isolation over the war in Georgia.
Dismissing the claim that Russia was sliding back into authoritarianism, he said: 'They are, in fact, pushing us onto the development track that is based not on normal and civilised cooperation with other countries, but on autonomous development behind thick walls and an iron curtain.'
Speaking in London on Thursday, Mr Gates noted differences within Nato over how to deal with Russia's invasion.
European objections prevented the alliance from offering membership to Georgia and former Soviet republic Ukraine.
'I think we need to proceed with some caution because there clearly is a range of views in the alliance about how to respond,' he told reporters ahead of a Nato defence ministers' meeting.
After routing the Georgian army, Moscow recognised the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, leading to concerns among some of the newer Nato members - Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia - about their own territorial integrity. Other Nato members, like Germany and Italy, stressed a conciliatory policy.
Mr Gates argued for a united response to guarantee the territorial integrity of Georgia. Yet the inability of the US and its allies to roll back Russian policy in Georgia presented the Nato alliance with another challenge to its relevance in a post-Cold War world.
