Moscow and Washington are launching a regular dialogue on terrorism, weapons of mass destruction, arms control and other security issues, a senior US official told the Associated Press.
?It?s a bilateral strategic dialogue on a wide range of issues that are important to both of us,? Undersecretary of State Robert Joseph said at the end of a one-day visit to Moscow.
?This is a dialogue that both sides want basically to re-establish,? Joseph said in an interview with The Associated Press. ?We?ve always continued to have discussions on these issues, obviously, but to have a dedicated channel is, I think, something that both countries would value.?
Joseph?s visit came amid a chilly period in Russian-American relations, with the Bush administration protesting what it said was the Kremlin?s backsliding on democracy and human rights and Moscow complaining that Washington was dragging its feet over World Trade Organization membership talks.
Moscow has also objected to what it views as increasing U.S. and NATO encroachment on former Soviet territory and, albeit in veiled terms, Washington?s alleged role in fomenting the uprisings that brought long-entrenched regimes to an end in Georgia, Ukraine and Kyrgyzstan.
