LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Summer 2009

by Alexander Rahr

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Sir,
Many western experts believe that the current financial crisis has halted Russian attempts to challenge the preeminence of the West by promoting the idea of a multi-polar world. They say if oil prices continue to fall, Russia will be forced to spend all of its accumulated financial reserves in order to save the country’s socio-economic system. In that case, Moscow will have to forget its ambitious plans indefinitely. So I would advise Russian politicians to stop trying to argue their case from a position of strength. Instead, they should point out that the West is hurting itself by denying Russia its legitimate place in a common security structure for the 21st century.

It would help if people everywhere remembered that Russia is definitely not the enemy of the West; the Cold War ended 20 years ago. Hence Dmitri Rogozin is right to remind us about the U.S.-Russian alliance against the Taliban and El Quaida in Afghanistan after the 9/11 terror attacks. The Islamic terrorist threat is far from over. If Obama were prepared to enter a “holy alliance” with Russia against resurgent Islamic extremism in the Greater Middle East, then talk about a new Cold War in Europe would stop immediately. Russia and the West would unite in the face of a common foe. It is a workable framework which former U.S. President George W. Bush and his “neo-con” supporters conspicuously failed to deliver.

In addition, since American and British forces are withdrawing from Iraq and other EU member states are reluctant to give NATO more support in Afghanistan, U.S. President Barack Obama has little choice about bringing Russia into the stabilization process for the region. If the new Administration were also prepared to admit Russia into a joint missile defence project, then the U.S. could also gain Moscow’s commitment to a much-needed containment policy against the Mullah regime in Iran.

Energy is the second global challenge where the West really needs to work in partnership with Russia. I believe the current conflict over gas is artificial and senseless. Russia is the only country in Europe that can guarantee the energy supplies needed by western economies. And Russia has no other viable option than to open up its production sites to western companies. So I see no alternative to a strong energy alliance between the EU and Russia, based – of course – on the principles of reciprocity.

If cooperation in these two fields can be achieved, then the West should be prepared to make Moscow an offer that it is unlikely to ignore – membership of NATO. This may seem a radical idea today, but NATO has changed profoundly in the last 20 years and its present-day structure will doubtless be unrecognizable within another couple of years. For example, Israel may apply for membership sooner or later. If countries like Ukraine and Georgia have sovereign rights to join NATO, then why not Russia and Israel?