WASHINGTON, March 7 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's foreign minister and the U.S. secretary of state put on a generally united front despite recent differences Tuesday after talks on a variety of global issues, including the "frozen" conflicts in the former Soviet Union.
Condoleezza Rice said that she and Sergei Lavrov had discussed a number of important issues, including the Iranian nuclear crisis, the Middle East and the conflicts in Nagorny-Karabakh, a region in Azerbaijan with a predominantly Armenian population, and in the self-proclaimed republic of Abkhazia in Georgia. Both conflicts erupted after the collapse of the Soviet Union.
Rice said the United States was satisfied with relations with Russia, although she expressed concern over what she termed were certain negative developments in the country. Washington has often criticized Moscow for allegedly "backsliding" on democracy and failing to observe human rights.
Lavrov said the talks in the U.S. capital "were productive and important for the future development of relations" between the two countries, but added that Moscow was concerned about U.S. position on Russia's accession to the World Trade Organization.
"The U.S. is the only country that has not reached a WTO agreement with Russia and has not abolished the notorious Jackson-Vanik amendment," Lavrov said.
The Jackson-Vanik Amendment links U.S. trade benefits, known as Normal Trade Relations (NTR), to the emigration and human rights policies of communist or formerly communist countries.
The Russian minister said the solution of the issues that had been discussed during the talks would largely influence the interaction between Russia and its partners in the Group of Eight industrialized nations.
St. Petersburg, Russia's second city, will host the next G8 summit in July.
"We have certain differences over the ways to pursue our goals, but our final aims coincide, in my opinion," Lavrov said referring to the non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, the fight against international crime, drug-trafficking and terrorism, and the development of global trade.
