(((As the two former superpowers sink inexorably into hideous mires of their own making, they still find the energy to feebly snarl at each other, not that anybody else cares nowadays.)))
RUSSIA SLAMS U.S. OVER RIGHTS REPORT. The Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement on March 12 in which it sharply criticized the U.S. State Department's annual report on human rights, published on March 11, mid.ru reported (see "RFE/RL Newsline," March 12, 2008). The statement charged that the report used a condescending tone to present "a hackneyed collection of claims regarding Russia, such as departure from the principles of democratic government, the harassment of dissenters, and restrictions on freedom of speech and of the press. Many passages are copied from previous reports." The ministry charged that the U.S. document "abounds in groundless accusations, quotes from unverified and obviously biased sources, mistakes, and the juggling of facts, particularly in regard to [unspecified] recent events."
Moscow accused Washington of hypocrisy and "double standards," and of avoiding mention of its own failings. It argued that the United States "essentially legalized torture, applies capital punishment to minors, denies responsibility for war crimes and massive human rights abuses in Iraq and Afghanistan, and refuses to join a series of human rights treaties...[while] disregarding systemic problems within its own country." (((Not to mention blowing its ailing economy to shreds after invading Afghanistan, but we might as well overlook that particular peccadillo.)))
The Russian statement added that "we did not expect from the State Department's latest opus an objective assessment of the human rights situation in Russia. After all, the United States has long regarded human rights as a foreign policy tool." PM
...WHILE LEADING EXPERT WARNS OF DETERIORATING TIES. Sergei Rogov, who heads the U.S. and Canada Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, was quoted by the daily "Novye izvestia" on March 13 as saying that U.S.-Russian relations "are continuing to deteriorate" and that the United States "wrote us off" in the 1990s as a major partner. Rogov argued that part of the reason for the recent downturn is that Washington has interjected an ideological element into the relationship by criticizing the state of democracy in Russia.
Rogov noted that the United States' foreign policy priority is not Russia but Iraq. Regarding the upcoming U.S. presidential election, he suggested that "trying to guess who will be better for Russia" – meaning a Democrat or Republican – "is certainly a mistake. It seems that the next U.S. administration will take a firmer stand with regard to Moscow, in any event" (see "RFE/RL Newsline," February 6 and 27, 2008). Rogov suggested that U.S. Senator Barack Obama (Democrat, Illinois) "recognizes the necessity of a dialogue with Russia more than other candidates do." Rogov also noted that either Obama or U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton (Democrat, New York) would be better from Moscow's point of view on issues such as missile defense. He argued that U.S. Senator John McCain (Republican, Arizona), by contrast, might "revert to dependence on brute force." Rogov added that "the deterioration of the U.S. economy and problems with Iraq will make the Americans too busy to entertain the idea of a new Cold War." PM
