RUSSIALINK: “Russia doesn’t pose threat to U.S., Russia is America’s rival, but not enemy – Kosachyov” – Interfax

Federation Council file photo

MOSCOW. July 25 (Interfax) – Russia and the United States will not be friends, they are rivals in the world, but Russia does not pose a threat to America, Konstantin Kosachyov, the head of the Federation council’s international affairs committee, said.

“Nikki Haley has recently stated what is apparently an official position of the United States that Russia will never be a friend of the U.S. The term ‘friends’ is probably generally not very common as regards any model of relations in international politics. I am ready to agree that the U.S. and Russia are indeed not friends,” Kosachyov said while meeting with U.S. experts on disarmament in the Federation Council.

Russia and the U.S. are actively competing with each other on the international scene, he said.

“We will be competing with each other for influence on third countries, on the weapons or natural gas markets. It’s very natural, everyone has their own interests. It’s a normal political game,” the senator said.

However, Kosachyov said one sometimes gets the impression that many U.S. politicians “begin to transfer the perception of Russia as a rival to the next perception category, as a threat, an enemy” at the level of mentality.

“We do not pose a threat to the United States of America. Russia does not agree with the global model that the U.S. is forcing on the world, a unipolar world model, but it’s not a threat to the United States of America,” Kosachyov said.

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