Treaty. But what response did we give when we discussed this issue
with our American partners? We said that we do not have the resources
and desire to establish such a system. But as professionals we both
understand that a missile defense system for one side and no such a
system for the other creates an illusion of security and increases
the possibility of a nuclear conflict. The defense system WILL
DESTROY THE STRATEGIC EQUILIBRIUM IN THE WORLD. In order to restore
that balance without setting up a missile defense system we will have
to create a system to overcome missile defense, which is what we are
doing now."
Putin: "AN ARMS RACE IS UNFOLDING. Was it we who withdrew from the
ABM Treaty? We must react to what our partners do. We already told
them two years ago, "don't do this, you don't need to do this. What
are you doing? YOU ARE DESTROYING THE SYSTEM OF INTERNATIONAL
SECURITY. You must understand that you are forcing us to take
retaliatory steps." ...we warned them. No, they did not listen to us.
Then we heard about them developing low-yield nuclear weapons and
they are continuing to develop these weapons." We told them that "it
would be better to look for other ways to fight terrorism than create
low-yield nuclear weapons and lower the threshold for using nuclear
weapons, and thereby put humankind on the brink of nuclear
catastrophe. But they don't listen to us. They are not looking for
compromise. Their entire point of view can be summed-up in one
sentence: 'Whoever is not with us is against us.'"
Putin asks, "So what should we do?" The present predicament has
brought us "the brink of disaster".
Putin: "Some people have the illusion that you can do everything just
as you want, regardless of the interests of other people. Of course
it is for precisely this reason that the international situation gets
worse and eventually results in an arms race as you pointed out. But
we are not the instigators. We do not want it. Why would we want to
divert resources to this? And we are not jeopardizing our relations
with anyone. But we must respond.
to worsen the situation. There are none. We are not interested in
that. We are interested in having a good atmosphere, environment and
energy dialogue around Russia".
So, what should Putin do? And how else can he meet his
responsibilities to the Russian people without taking
defensive "retaliatory" action to Bush's act of war. By expanding its
nuclear capability to Europe, all of Russia is in imminent danger,
and so, Putin must decide "precisely which means will be used to
destroy the installations that our experts believe represent a
potential threat for the Russian Federation". (Note that Putin NEVER
THREATENS TO AIM HIS MISSILES AT EUROPEAN CITIES AS WAS REPORTED IN
THE WESTERN MEDIA)
Putin has made great strides in improving life for the Russian
people. That is why his public approval rating is soaring at 75%. The
Russian economy has been growing by 7% a year. He's lowered the
number of people living beneath the poverty-line by more than half
and will bring it down to European levels by 2010. Real incomes are
growing by an astonishing 12% per year. As Putin says, "Combating
poverty is one of our top priorities and we still have to do a lot to
improve our pension system too because the correlation between
pensions and the average wage is still lower here than in Europe."
If only that was true in America!
Russia now has the ninth largest economy in the world and has amassed
enormous gold and currency reserves--the third largest in the world.
It is also one of the leading players in international energy policy
with a daily-oil output which now exceeds Saudi Arabia. It is also
the largest producer of natural gas in the world. Russia will only
get stronger as we get deeper into the century and energy resources
become scarcer.
Putin strongly objects to the idea that he is not committed to human
rights or is "rolling back democracy". He points out how truncheon-
wielding police in Europe routinely use tear gas, electric-shock
devices and water cannons to disperse demonstrators. Is that how the
West honors human rights and civil liberties?
As for the Bush administration---Putin produced a copy of Amnesty
International's yearly report condemning the United States conduct in
the war on terror. "I have a copy of Amnesty International's report
here, which includes a section on the United States," he said. "The
organization has concluded that the United States IS NOW THE
PRINCIPLE VIOLATOR OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS WORLDWIDE."
He added, "We have a proverb in Russian, 'Don't blame the mirror if
your face is crooked.'"
Putin is fiercely nationalistic. He has helped to restore Russia's
self-confidence and rebuild the economy. He's demonstrated a
willingness to compromise with the Bush administration on every
substantive issue, but he has been repeatedly rebuffed. The last
thing he wants is a nuclear standoff with the United States. But he
will do what he must to defend his people from the threat of foreign
attack. The deployment of the missile defense system will require
that Russia develop its own new weapons systems and change its
thinking about trusting the United States. Friendship is not possible
in the present climate.
As for "democracy"; Putin said it best himself:
"Am I a 'pure democrat'? (laughs) Of course I am, absolutely. The
problem is that I'm all alone---the only one of my kind in the whole
wide world. Just look at what's happening in North America, it's
simply awful---torture, homeless people, Guantanamo, people detained
without trial and investigation. Just look at what's happening in
Europe---harsh treatment of demonstrators, rubber bullets and tear
gas used first in one capital then in another, demonstrators killed
on the streets..... I have no one to talk to since Mahatma Gandhi
died."
Well said, Vladimir.
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