Paris - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday
fiercely criticized US foreign policy after the 9/11 terrorist
attacks, saying that Washington's global ambitions had ruined a
chance for peace.
Speaking at an international conference in the south-eastern
French resort of Evian, Medvedev said that after the events of
September 11, 2001, Washington had missed a chance 'to build a truly
democratic world order' because of its 'determination to enforce its
global dominance.'
'Russia - like many other states - instantly, without a second
thought, stretched out a hand of friendship to the Americans (after
the attacks),' Medvedev said. 'And we did that not only to rebuff
terrorism ... but also for the sake of finally overcoming the
division in the world which was caused by the Cold War.'
However, Washington undertook what he called 'a series of
unilateral actions which were coordinated neither with the UN nor
even with a number of the United States' partners. It's enough to
recall the decisions to abandon the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty or
to invade Iraq.'
Medvedev went on to say that military bases were now being
established 'all along the perimeter' of Russia and that parts of the
American global anti-missile shield were being constructed in Poland
and the Czech Republic.
'The question is: Why is it needed, for what reasons? And why,
when taking these decisions, was it not possible at least to have a
preliminary consultation with one's allies?' Medvedev said.
Medvedev urged a de-escalation of the kind of confrontational
rhetoric that had marked the Cold War.
'That all belongs to the past - just as Sovietology does,' he
said. 'Sovietology, like paranoia, is a very dangerous disease, and
it is pity that part of the US administration still suffers from it.'
USA
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