Russia & the West: Significance, Challenges, and Potential
On Tuesday and Wednesday, April 25-26, 2017 the Kozmetsky Center co-sponsored a conference on Russia & the West: Significance, Challenges, and Potential. Speakers included distinguished experts of the United States, European, and Eurasian academic, policy and private sector communities to assess contemporary and future security and economic relations between Russia and the West. Speakers shared perspectives on the importance of Russia’s bilateral and multilateral relationships with Western nations, immediate and longer-term strategic interests and priorities, economic and security aspects of Russia’s relationships with Western countries, significance that should be assigned to values in defining these relationships, and overall implications of Russia’s relationships with Western nations for the contemporary and potential emerging geopolitical world order. This was the third conference event on transatlantic security funded by a U.S. Department of Education Title VI National Resource Program grant in cooperation with the Center for European Studies and Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies at University of Texas, Austin.
Featured Speakers
The conference featured speakers from the United States, Russia, and Europe:
· Dr. Tatiana Shakleina, Professor and Head of the Department of Applied Research of International Problems, Moscow State Institute of International Relations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation (MGIMO)
· Prof. Dr. Julian Lindley-French, Vice President, Atlantic Treaty Association and Co-Chair, GLOBEC NATO Adaptation Project
· Dr. Alexander Lukin, Department Head, Faculty of World Economy and International Affairs, National Research University of Higher Economics and Director, Center for East Asian and SCO Studies, MGIMO
· Dr. Deborah Palmieri, Honorary Consul General of the Russian Federation in Colorado and Founder & President, Deb Palmieri Russia LLC
· Dr. Andrey Tsygankov, Professor of International Politics, San Francisco State University
· Col. Gottfried Salchner, Austrian Chair, College of International Security Studies, George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies
· Dr. Igor Okunev, Lecturer, Moscow State Institute of International Relations MGIMO
· Adm. Dragan Samardzic, Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Montenegro and Representative of Montenegro to the OSCE
· Dr. Isabelle Facon, Senior Research Fellow, Chercheur, Fondation pour la Recherche strategique
· Dr. Valerii Garbuzov, Professor and Director, Institute of USA and Canada Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences (ISKRAN)
· Dr. Nikolas Gvosdev, Professor, National Security Studies, U.S. Naval War College
· Dr. James Galbraith, Lloyd M. Bentsen Jr. Chair in Government/Business Relations and Professor of Government, Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs, University of Texas at Austin
· Dr. Sharyl Cross, Director, Kozmetsky Center, St. Edward’s University (Moderator)
Featured Speakers
Dr. Tatiana Shakleina, Moscow State Institute of International Relations MGIMO
“Russia & America are 'Great Powers', and cooperation between these two countries would do so much for world security.”
Dr. Valerii Garbuzov, Russian Academy of Sciences
“There is a complete deficit of trust, even during the Cold War we had well established channels for dialogue.”
Adm. Dragan Samardzic, Armed Forces of Montenegro
“Montenegro did not seek to join NATO against Russia, but rather because of benefits of collective security.”
Professor Julian Lindley-French, Atlantic Treaty Association
“The United States & Russia can't discount Europe; major powers in Europe exceed Russia's capacity for influence.”
Dr. Alexander Lukin, National Research University of Higher Economics
“Imposing Western values in the East has reached its limits; Putin's current foreign policy strategy is working… we are not friends, but strategic competitors and we need a framework in which we can talk to each other. We need to reach agreement on defining new rules of the game to avoid unintended conflict.”
Dr. Nikolas Gvosdev, U.S. Navy War College
“The US must 1) define the red lines, and 2) keep expectations for US-Russian relationship limited/realistic.”
Dr. Andrei Tsygankov, San Francisco State University
“Russia's asymmetrical capabilities are sufficient to challenge Western interests, and we do not agree on world order. All parties must 1) develop mechanisms to prevent military confrontation, and 2) cooperate in areas where values/interests don't clash.”
Col. Gottfried Salchner, George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies
“Austria is geo-strategically positioned as a buffer between NATO & Russia, and a ‘bloc mentality’ remains.”
