Interfax: USA must respect Russian interests for better relations – ambassador
(Interfax – July 1, 2014) The United States must respect Russia’s interests if there is to be any possibility of an improvement in Russian-American diplomatic relations during the Obama administration’s tenure, Russia’s ambassador to Washington Sergey Kislyak has said, privately-owned Russian news agency Interfax reported on 1 July.
“I think all the possibilities exist for an improvement in relations. The only issue is that our American colleagues be more respectful to our arguments and interests”, he said. But, he said, “we don’t hear this yet, particularly in conditions where we have seriously different views about what is going on in Ukraine.”
“The Americans fully support the consequences of the anti-constitutional coup in Ukraine”, he added.
Kislyak said Washington was beginning to understand that sanctions against Russia were not producing the required results.
“I think that the sanction toolset of persuasion, using your terminology, won’t work, and I think the Americans are starting to understand this” he said.
“Whether there will be sanctions or not, I don’t know, but I can say precisely that our line will not change because of it, because it is not opportunistic,” he said.
In an interview with state-controlled Russian Channel One TV, Kislyak said he was surprised at how some American diplomats are not prepared to listen to Russia’s point of view.
“Today, I am surprised how easily the Americans, to use their terminology, bring old skeletons out of old closets… Discussing Ukraine, our American colleagues talk about us, as if it’s a conflict, let’s say, between Russia and Ukraine or between the USA and Russia, but neither is true, because the problem in Ukraine is a consequence of the events in Kiev, which the Americans very energetically supported. And what surprised me most, even sometimes in conversations with people who I’ve associated with for more than a year, associated professionally, is their unwilligness to listen,” he said.