Matvienko: Russia And Usa Should Re-evaluate Their Relationship

During a meeting on Wednesday with US Ambassador to Russia Alexander Vershbow, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Valentina Matvienko said that Russia and the USA should change their world-view and re-evaluate their relationship in the light of the September 11th terrorist attacks in New York and Washington. Matvienko, in the name of the Russian people, extended her deep condolences to US citizens in connection with the events, which, according to her, "shook the world and shook Russian society." She said that the way Russians left flowers at the American embassy testified to this. The vice-premier stressed that international terrorism was a great challenge and that it had to be prevented, preferably through joint efforts. In her opinion, Russia and the USA should play the leading roles in combating terrorism. In his turn, the US ambassador said that America had been touched by the solidarity displayed by Russian citizens. Vershbow said that the meetings between the two nations' presidents in Ljubljana and Genoa and the results they produced entitled one to say that Russia and America were not simply partners, but allies.