MOSCOW - US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, balancing her harsh criticisms of Russia's democratic record, Wednesday called Moscow a "strategic partner" and urged boosted cooperation on several fronts.
"Russia is not a strategic enemy. We are not against Russia," Rice told Moscow Echo radio before a scheduled meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
"We see Russia as a strategic partner in the war on terror. We see Russia as a strategic partner in stopping the spread of weapons of mass destruction. We see Russia as a strategic partner in solving regional issues like the Balkans and the Middle East," she said.
Rice also used the live talk show to reassure Russians that they have nothing to fear from US support for democratic movements in former Soviet republics, saying the liberalization would benefit Russia as well as those countries.
"It is not a zero sum game," she said.
Her accommodating tone contrasted sharply with a volley of criticism she delivered on arrival in Moscow Tuesday.
She told reporters that moves by Putin to centralize power in the Kremlin and to clamp down on the media were "very worrying," and said in terms of Russia's overall record of democratic reform "the trends have not been positive."
On Wednesday, she was a good deal more conciliatory, saying that "we understand that Russia is finding its own way and we respect that.
"All that we are saying is that for US-Russia relationships to really deepen and for Russia to gain its full potential there needs to be democratic development. There should not be so much concentration of power just in the presidency."
She said that military-to-military cooperation was good, and said that Russia had been "helpful" in insisting on strict controls before nuclear fuel was provided to the Bushehr plant in Iran.
However, she stressed that Washington will be watching closely the verdict in the trial of the shattered oil company Yukos' former chief, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who faces a 10 year jail term in a politically charged trial. A verdict was due to be read April 27.
"We and investors and the rest of the international community all hope that it is a process that inspires confidence, that the rule of law obtains in Russia," Rice said.
On her first trip here as chief US diplomat, Rice flew in to prepare for President George W. Bush's Moscow trip on May 9 for the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II. Even before she hit the ground she was chiding the Kremlin for democratic backsliding.
"There's no doubt when we talk about the trends -- the trends have not been positive on the democracy side," Rice told reporters on her plane en route from Washington.
She also signaled that Washington would be keeping a sharp eye out to make sure Putin follows through on his pledge to step down in 2008 after two terms as president in accordance with the Russian constitution.
Putin muddied the waters somewhat last week when he started to speak about a bar on running for three consecutive terms, but Rice said she expected the Russian leader to keep his word.
The secretary stressed that although "there have been some setbacks," Russia had come a long way since the autocratic days of the Soviet Union and was a "state that is still in transition."
Rice said she expected to discuss trade and Russia's membership in the WTO with her hosts, as well as energy, democracy and the rule of law, and international developments such as the upcoming Israeli pullout from Gaza.
But she made it clear that the United States had other issues with the Russians beyond the question of political reform.
04/20/2005 08:41 GMT