Blog Posts tagged with "cooperation"

I had an experience last week I never expected when I began my naval career in the 1970s during the Cold War period: a four-day visit to Moscow and St. Petersburg, hosted by the Russian Chief of Defense.

I'm visiting the Russian Naval Academy in ths photo.

This was a striking visit for me, in particular given my love of Russian literature and culture. I have been a long and devoted reader of "the Russians," whose deep and profound views of life influenced me as a young reader.

Dostoyevsky, Tolstoy, Solzhenitsyn, Turgenev, Pushkin, Lermontov, Bulgakov, and many others left their mark on me early in my reading life. Above all, I loved the brilliant (and sadly unfinished) novel "Dead Souls" by Nikolai Gogol, which captures so much of the indomitable character of Russia in all its unique spirit and bleak humor.

I've been equally fascinated with the long history of Russia, including its astounding panoply of leaders -- from Ivan the Terrible to Peter the Great; from Stalin to Gorbachev. Given its massive geography and central position on the Eurasian continent, Russia has been engaged in key world events for centuries.

Throughout the first part of my career, the Soviet Union was the opponent. I never thought I'd have a chance to visit Red Square, meet with the Russian Foreign and Defense Ministers, fire a symbolic cannon shot over the Neva River, tour the revolutionary cruiser Aurora, and hold detailed discussions with the senior military officer in Russia. But those Cold War days ended almost two decades ago with the collapse of the Soviet Union and the partnership with Russia has emerged. Consultations at the senior level are a vital part of this important partnership with Russia.

The general theme of our talks was how we could enhance cooperation between Russia and NATO in key areas linked to our common security in the 21st century. I believe there are many: counter-piracy, counter-narcotics, counter-terrorism, Afghanistan, missile defense, and arms control were all topics on the table. These are real and practical ideas.

Given the upcoming visit of President Medvedev to the NATO-Russia Summit in Lisbon this weekend, the visit was especially timely. All our conversations were based on the idea of Russia as a key strategic partner to NATO, and I think we have great potential in all of the areas mentioned above.

I was followed in Moscow by the Secretary-General of NATO, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who explored many of the same issues. He, too, is hopeful of an extended dialogue between NATO and Russia.

Are there going to be areas of disagreement? Of course. But I firmly believe that Russia's best future lies to her west, in engagement and partnership with Europe, NATO, and the United States.

Life is full of choices. There is a Russian proverb that says "Every road has two directions." My hope is that through their mutual choices, NATO and Russia will find a way to travel together on the road ahead.

Adm. James Stavridis
Commander, U.S. European Command and
Supreme Allied Commander, Europe