SPAIN: U.S.'s Under secretary of state Nicholas Burns dismisses Russian claim of election meddling

U.S. State Department's Nicholas Burns calls Russian claims of election meddling "untrue" ahead of an OSCE Ministerial meeting in Madrid and says that Russia's draft proposal to reduce the organization's vote-monitoring and ban public reports right after an election faces their full opposition. On Kosovo, Burns says there are "significant differences" between Russia and the United States. The U.S. State Department's under-secretary for political affairs, Nicholas Burns, rejected again on Wednesday (November 28) claims made by Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this week that Washington was trying to undermine December parliamentary elections, calling his sharp words "untrue." Putin accused Washington of plotting to undermine next week's parliamentary elections after Europe's election monitoring body, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation (OSCE), abandoned plans to observe the poll. "It's preposterous to assert that somehow the United States government and the State Department specifically counselled ODIHR (OSCE's ODIHR election monitoring arm) not to monitor those elections. It was clear to everybody in Vienna at the OSCE that Russia had broken precedence, that Russia had inflicted upon the OSCE, or impressed upon the OSCE, conditions for the monitors that were unworkable -that it was the first country in memory over the last fifteen years to demand the types of conditions that would make it impossible for ODIHR to act," Burns told a news conference ahead of the OSCE Ministerial Council set to take place in Madrid this week. OSCE said Russian obstruction - not U.S. influence - was behind its decision to pull out its observers ahead of December 2nd's elections, which are being seen as a demonstration of Putin's enduring power in Russia. The U.S. joined the European Commission in voicing concerns about the treatment of the Russian opposition following a police crackdown on anti-Kremlin rallies at the weekend, which saw the arrest of opposition leader and former world chess champion Garry Kasparov. Burns said that while Washington supported the OSCE's decision, it had not influenced them. Meanwhile in Moscow, President Vladimir Putin, who steps down next year, said he would not allow foreign powers to upset Russia's stability in the wake of two crucial polls, which will decide the country's future. On Monday (November 26) Putin told the West not to poke their "snotty noses" in Russia. He blamed Washington for encouraging the election monitoring arm of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe not to send observers to the December 2 polls. The OSCE's Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) has said its decision was a reaction to obstructions by the Russian authorities. Burns said that Russia's draft proposal to reduce the organization's vote-monitoring and ban public reports right after an election faces their full opposition. "Russia is the author of this proposal I believe that would severely weaken and undermine ODIHR. I know that some of the co-sponsors are Uzbekistan and Belarus, and I know Kazahkstan is. We think it's very unfortunate that those countries developed this proposal -we are absolutely opposed to it. I'm not going to give advice to any country as to what they should do, these are sovereign decisions that countries should make but we are absolutely opposed to that resolution. We will not compromise. We will not give a millimetre of opening to any proposal that will weaken ODIHR -it's just not possible at this ministerial or any time in the future. So we are going to defend ODIHR, and countries will have to make their own decisions, but those decisions certainly have consequences, you are right to imply that in your very good question," Burns told reporters. Putin's harsh election rhetoric reflected growing foreign policy rifts between the West and Russia, which seeks to develop an assertive, independent role in international relations. In a keynote speech earlier this year, Putin accused the United States of seeking to dictate its will to the world. Kosovo's independence is also set to take central stage at the Madrid OSCE meeting. There has been no glimmer of compromise between Serbia and the Kosovo Albanians since international mediation began in earnest in 2006. Kosovo is getting ready to declare independence and has the promise of Western recognition. Burns was reluctant to talk about the future until the United Nations issues its report on December 10th. However, he did highlight differences yet again between his country and the Russians over Kosovo. "So we know a lot about Kosovo. We are committed because we have young men and women serving in our military forces there. And we know that if these negotiations do not succeed by December 10th then we'll have to enter a trend, the international community will have to make some decisions, there'll be obviously a transitional phase and all of us will have to do what we have to do. I don't want to foresee what we will do until we know where we are in December 10th. So there are some significant differences between Russia and the United States -and we hope that Russia would act constructively to recognize realities on the ground in Kosovo and to continue to urge the Kosovo government to compromise. We have not seen much of that from the Serb government over the past year and a half," he said. The United States and European Union say the mediationwith a report to the United Nations by December 10. But Serbia's ally Russia has already blocked independence in the Security Council and says it will "insist" on further negotiation. Western powers back Kosovo's independence after 8 years under United Nations tutelage and NATO protection as "the only viable" solution to a dispute in which compromise is impossible. But Serbia warns of violent unrest, and has raised the possibility that Serbs whose mini-republic makes up half of Bosnia could demand, in their turn, to secede from that state. Kosovo Albanians, the United States and the European Union say the talks will end when mediators make their report to the U.N. by Dec 10. Russia, third pillar of the mediating 'troika', says they can carry on provided there is hope of a deal. The OSCE Ministerial Council that gathers in Madrid representatives from 56 countries on Thursday (November 29) and Friday (November 30) The meeting could be overshadowed by an increase of tension between Russia and some western members of the organization.

ITN Source | November 30, 2007

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