Hillary Clinton in Russia's zone of privileged interests

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U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton completed her whirlwind tour of Ukraine, Poland, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia on July 5.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton completed her whirlwind tour of Ukraine, Poland, Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia on July 5. If we take her at her word, it seems she wasn't terribly enthusiastic about the trip. In an interview with a Polish television channel, she admitted that she was preoccupied with the upcoming wedding of her daughter, Chelsea. And yet neither wedding preparations nor Independence Day celebrations were enough to keep Clinton in Washington. On July 1, she embarked on her tour of countries that - with the exception of Poland - fall within Russia's "zone of privileged interests," to quote Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.

On the Fourth of July, America usually takes a break from its problems with fireworks, beer and all-day BBQs. America commemorates the Pilgrims and the Founding Fathers, and reflects on the history of its rise as a mighty nation, which is replete with myths and half-truths, like the history of any nation.

But the facts of America's history must not be allowed to spoil America's story, like the fact that the Continental Congress declared the colonies' independence on July 2, 1776. The Declaration of Independence was completed by June 28 and was officially adopted on August 2. Two of the most prominent signers, presidents Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, died within hours of each other on the same day, July 4, 1826. In 1870, Congress declared July 4 to be Independence Day.

By opting to travel to foreign nations instead of celebrating Independence Day at home, Clinton showed her hosts how important they are to America.

Some politicians in Eastern Europe and the southern Caucasus have come to believe that the Obama administration has abandoned its Eastern partners for improved relations with Russia and China. They claim that Washington's focus on resetting U.S.-Russian relations has blinded it to the problems on Russia's periphery. And they are not alone: Congressional Republicans have used the reset as yet another opportunity to blast Obama's foreign policy.

In light of this, Secretary Clinton's visit to Russia's "zone of privileged interests" can be seen as a kind of comeback in a region where U.S. presence was very strong under the Bush administration - so strong, in fact, that Georgia felt safe enough to provoke a war.

Clinton made her final stop in Tbilisi on July 5, where Georgian politicians eagerly awaited her arrival. They wanted to know to what extent they can count on Washington's support. President Saakashvili's political allies are abandoning him as opposition to him at home grows stronger. Saakashvili desperately needs a show of support from Washington. Georgian politicians stated openly that they will consider it a political victory if Clinton refers to Abkhazia and South Ossetia as illegally occupied Georgian territories at least once during her visit.

However, on this point Clinton was evasive. She said only that Washington does not agree with the presence of Russian troops in Abkhazia and South Ossetia, and that the U.S. and Russia are working together through the OSCE Minsk Group to settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict even though they cannot agree on Georgia. On her tour, Clinton repeatedly emphasized that although Moscow and Washington are resetting their relations, they will not necessarily agree on every issue. This statement was intended to encourage the opponents of the reset, while not committing the Obama administration to anything specific. But Clinton could have said the same about the U.S. relations with Israel, France or Germany. It's diplomatic boilerplate, nothing more.

In the Caucasus, Clinton faced more pressing matters than shoring up Saakashvili's presidency with symbolic support. Her main stop in the region was Azerbaijan, where she met with President Ilham Aliyev. As U.S. relations with Pakistan become increasingly uneasy, Azerbaijan is becoming a major transit routes for U.S. cargo destined for Afghanistan. Since the invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, U.S. aircraft have made tens of thousands of drops in Azerbaijan. The Pentagon has also been using Azerbaijan's ports and railroads for supply purposes.

As Clinton arrived at Heydar Aliyev International Airport, drove down Heydar Aliyev Avenue, and passed the Heydar Aliyev Cultural Center, she probably realized that she'd better stay on the Aliyev clan's good side. Clinton had to choose her words very carefully whenever the issue of Azerbaijan's human rights record was raised.

Off the record, Azerbaijani diplomats have repeatedly expressed their dissatisfaction with the current state of the relations between Baku and Washington. They have numerous complaints. For starters, the post of the U.S. ambassador to Azerbaijan remained vacant for over twelve months. It was not until late May 2010 that Obama appointed career diplomat Matthew Bryza to the post. Bryza has co-chaired international negotiations for the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

After the Obama administration worked so hard to get Armenia and Turkey to establish official diplomatic relations, Azerbaijan felt ignored. That being said, Washington chose to turn a blind eye to human rights violations in Azerbaijan once it realized that the crisis in Kyrgyzstan could complicate U.S. military shipments to Afghanistan. The administration realized that it may need to find alternative routes. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates visited Baku four weeks ago to discuss precisely this issue.

In addition to its strategic importance to the U.S. war effort in Afghanistan, Azerbaijan is the region's chief energy hub. Clinton's visit is meant to end the period of neglect in U.S.-Azerbaijan relations. In Baku and Yerevan, Clinton urged the sides to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict as soon as possible.

Clinton's visit to Ukraine was no less interesting. The United States seems to have made its final choice, and Yulia Tymoshenko is not it. It was pretty amusing watching Clinton's meeting with President Viktor Yanukovych, whom Washington referred to as a Soviet relic until recently. Clinton also met with Tymoshenko, who provided Clinton with mountains of evidence that Ukraine is sliding back into authoritarianism.

It's difficult to say what impression Yanukovych made on Clinton. However, after their meeting, she stated that the United States is eager to cooperate with Ukraine on energy, specifically nuclear energy, and invest in Ukraine's natural gas infrastructure. As far as its NATO membership is concerned, Clinton said that it's Kiev's call.

With Clinton's trip, the Obama administration appears to have launched a reset in its relations with the countries on Russia's periphery. But its actions in the region are now guided by pragmatism, as distinct from the ideology of the Bush administration. Russia is unlikely to benefit from this new approach, but to be fair, no one ever promised Russia trouble-free relations with the United States.

Clinton left Tbilisi on the night of July 5 to plunge back into wedding planning. With the marriage of daughter Chelsea, 30, to Marc Mezvinsky from Goldman Sachs, the grandson of a Ukrainian Jewish immigrant, the Clintons will now become a multi-confessional clan. Marc is the son of former Iowa Congressman Ed Mezvinsky, who was released from jail not long ago after serving a seven-year sentence for fraud. Marc Mezvinsky is also the grandson of Ukrainian expat and Jewish immigrant Abe Mezvinsky. The wedding is scheduled for July 30. Congratulations to the young couple.

The opinions expressed in this article are the author's and do not necessarily represent those of RIA Novosti.

 

MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti political commentator Andrei Fedyashin)

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