Obama administration overtures signal thaw in US- Russia relations

The American and Russian leadership have exchanged letters and telephone calls, regarding some important issues, since mid-February, which have raised prospects of a thaw in relations between the two bitter rivals. Also, it has now been revealed, US president Barack Obama has sent a letter to his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev, suggesting a halt in the development of his country's missile defence programme in Eastern Europe, if Russia should be willing to help neutralise the threat posed by Iran's nuclear programme.

According to senior US administration officials Obama's letter, delivered to Medvedev in mid-February, apart from covering a number of topics of mutual interest to the two countries, also included the issue of missile defence and how it related to the Iranian threat.

Officials indicated that the letter repeated an assertion Obama administration officials have made recently that the missile defence system would not be necessary should the threat posed by Iran's long-range missiles and its nuclear programme be eliminated.

Iran has repeatedly asserted that its nuclear programme is aimed at developing energy not weapons. It has also received Russian support on a range of issues allowing it to resist Washington's tough maneuvering.

The previous Bush administration's move to install a missile and radar base in Poland and the Czech Republic deeply angered the Russians who felt that such a weapons programme, located so close to its border represented a threat to its national security.

The Bush administration had argued, without much conviction, that the system would protect Russia as well as NATO allies from the threat posed by Iranian missiles.

The Obama administration has sent clear signals to the Russians from day one that it was interested in resolving issues, and restoring relations, with Russia.

Top level US officials, including vice president Joe Biden, defence secretary, Robert Gates and undersecretary of state, William J. Burns at various fora over the last two months have suggested that Moscow's cooperation in eliminating the perceived Iranian nuclear threat could result in the idea of missile defence being shelved.

"If, through strong diplomacy with Russia and our other partners, we can reduce or eliminate that threat, it obviously shapes the way at which we look at missile defense. We are also open to the possibility of cooperation with Russia and with our NATO partners on new missile defense configurations which can take advantage of assets which each of us have," Burns said in an interview with the Russian news agency Interfax.

Administration officials indicated that Russia has not responded to the letter on missile defence, details of which were first reported yesterday by the Russian newspaper Kommersant. President Obama is scheduled to meet his counterpart Dmitry Medvedev early next month in London, on the sidelines of a summit of the Group of 20 industrialized and developing nations.

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov is scheduled to meet Saturday with secretary of state Hillary Clinton in Geneva.