2002-05-24 01:49 MSK - Putin criticizes US Senate's decision
MOSCOW -
President Vladimir Putin on Thursday criticized the U.S. Senate's refusal to
lift trade sanctions against Russia as a "strange decision" reflecting outmoded
thinking, the Interfax news agency reported. The Senate made the decision on
Wednesday, the eve of U.S. President George W. Bush's visit to Russia for a
summit at which trade issues are expected to be a significant component. The
Senate refused to lift trade restrictions Russia under the Jackson-Vanik
amendment, a 1974 law that ties Moscow's trade privileges to its policies on
Jewish emigration and other human rights. "Those in the United States who view
our relations not as American-Russian but American-Soviet still have high
potential," Putin was quoted as telling a meeting of Russian industrial and
business figures. Bush and Putin will discuss boosting Russian oil exports to
the United States during their upcoming summit, Russia's economics and trade
minister said Thursday. Although Russian oil companies started exporting oil to
the United States for the first time only this year, the strong growth in
Russia's oil sector means Moscow could become a "strategic partner" of the
United States in ensuring steady energy supplies, Trade Minister Gherman Gref
told reporters. U.S. Undersecretary of Energy Robert Card said recently that the
United States is looking to Russia — the world's second-largest oil producer —
as a key alternative source of oil. The United States is keen to reduce its
dependence on OPEC, given the unrest in the Middle East and uncertainties over
Iraq. Despite Russian oil sector growth, Gref also emphasized that Russian oil
companies need more outside investment. U.S. Commerce Secretary Don Evans
responded by predicting a large boost in U.S. investment in Russia in the next
few years. Their news conference came just hours before Bush was to arrive in
Moscow for a four-day visit. The centerpiece of the visit is an arms control
deal cutting nuclear arsenals by two-thirds, but trade is also expected to top
the agenda. Bush is expected to meet Russian Agriculture Minister Alexei
Gordeyev and discuss a dispute over U.S. poultry exports to Russia, the
ITAR-Tass news agency reported. Russia suspended American chicken imports in
March over sanitary concerns, then lifted the ban after weeks of negotiations.
But new regulations have delayed a resumption of deliveries, frustrating
producers in 38 U.S. states that make chicken the chief American export to
Russia. Another thorn in trade relations is the U.S. refusal to formally
recognize Russia as a market economy, a crucial step before Russia can join the
World Trade Organization. Russia is the largest economy still outside the WTO,
which it has been trying to join for seven years. Gref said Bush would not
formally recognize Russia as a market economy during this visit, despite recent
statements by Russian officials suggesting that he would. -AP
