Secretary Hillary Clinton delivered these remarks in Washington, DC on the third anniversary of the death of Anna Politkovskaya

Secretary Clinton. Today we mark with sadness the third anniversary of the tragic slaying of journalist Anna Politkovskaya. To date, no one has been brought to justice in this case, similar to other cases involving violent crimes against journalists in Russia, including Paul Klebnikov and more recently Natalya Estemirova. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, 18 journalists have been killed in Russia since 2000 in retaliation for their work. In only one case have the killers been convicted.

While we welcome calls by Russian officials defending the necessity of a free press, the failure to bring to justice the killers of these journalists undermines efforts to strengthen the rule of law, improve government accountability, and combat corruption.

Secretary Hillary Clinton and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov delivered these remarks in Moscow, Russia

Foreign Minister Lavrov. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. Well, good afternoon. I want to start by thanking Minister Lavrov for hosting me in Moscow today, along with my delegation. We have had a very productive and comprehensive set of discussions. This follows on the work that we began over the last many months to transform the relationship between our two countries, to find common ground wherever we can, to further mutual respect and mutual interests, without in any way accepting the fact that there are not differences between us, because there are. But to talk about those differences, to share them openly, we think is also an important part of this new aspect to our relationship.

Just three days ago, Sergey and I were in Zurich working together to bring about the signing of the historic protocols between Armenia and Turkey regarding normalization of relations. Both of our countries strongly support this process, and it's another example of how we are working together.

We believe that the framework that has been established that was announced by our two presidents during the summit here in Moscow in July is extremely important. We have agreed to discuss a broad range of important matters in these 16 working groups, which, as Sergey has said, have begun their important consultations. We know that this takes time. It doesn't happen overnight. It requires building trust and confidence between us. But I am very convinced that this is important for each of our nations and our people, and indeed, the world.

Our work in the Bilateral Presidential Commission is looking closely at how we can pursue practical, concrete results on issues ranging from nuclear security and energy efficiency to scientific cooperation, economic growth, and even sports. Now, we know that the fact that these meetings are occurring does not guarantee results, but they do set in motion a process and an opportunity to build relationships that will widen the avenues of cooperation.

President Obama and I believe that it is this cooperative relationship and the acceptance of shared responsibility that is really at the core of the 21^st century relationship between the United States and Russia. One example of that is the work that our technical experts are doing on a START agreement to cut our nuclear arsenal to demonstrate leadership from the two largest nuclear powers in the world. We are also committed to working together on the Nonproliferation Treaty. Our goal remains to complete the work on START by December 5^th when the current agreement expires. The global initiative on nuclear terrorism to create a joint effort to secure vulnerable nuclear materials and set new standards is another important step that we are pursuing together. And we look forward to Russia's leadership in helping to make the Global Nuclear Security Summit next April in Washington a success.

As Sergey said, we have also broadened our area of cooperation when it comes to Afghanistan. We appreciate the transit agreement that is now in effect. We believe we have common interests to reduce the threat of extremism, terrorism, narco-trafficking. And this is the kind of very clear-headed, practical cooperation that is to our mutual benefit.

We obviously discussed some of the broader foreign policy issues that we both face. Iran's nuclear program remains a matter of serious concern, and we're working closely with Russia through the P-5+1 process. We had a constructive meeting in Geneva on October 1^st. And we are working to ensure that Iran moves forward with us on this engagement track and demonstrates unequivocally that it is seeking only the peaceful use of nuclear weapons.

We had a long discussion and brought in some of our technical experts to review where we stand on missile defense. We explained that our assessment of the evolving threat from Iran led President Obama to adopt a new, different approach to missile defense. We are very interested in working with Russia to develop cooperation, including a joint threat assessment and intensified efforts to establish a joint data exchange center, as our presidents agreed to in July, as a means of making missile defense a common enterprise against what we believe are increasingly common threats.

We appreciate the cooperation that we've had on North Korea and Russia's very strong interest in the peace process in the Middle East. We look forward to being able to attend a conference in Moscow at the appropriate time as part of the process leading to a two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.

Now, we will continue to have disagreements. And I think it's very important for both the American media and the Russian media to understand that we are different countries. We have different historical experiences, different perspectives. But we are planting those disagreements in a much broader field of cooperation, and hopefully, we are enriching the earth in which this cooperation can take root. We will not see eye-to-eye on Georgia, for example. We just have a difference of opinion. We have made it clear that we will not recognize South Ossetia and Abkhazia. But we are going to continue to work in every other area where we do agree.

We will continue to raise questions concerning civil society and the rule of law and the role of NGOs. We think that that's a way to really deepen and broaden our engagement. But on balance, I feel very good about the so-called reset of our relations. Even though I didn't get the Russian word right—which Sergey immediately corrected me over—it is a real pleasure to be back in Moscow for the continuation of these dialogues that our two presidents and the minister and I and other members of our government are engaged in. We really are committed to this relationship. We believe strongly that working together, step by step, we are transforming a relationship that was once defined by the shadow of mutually assured destruction into one that is based on mutual respect and, over time, increasingly mutual trust, because we both have an obligation to the Russian people and to the American people, but indeed to all the people of the world, for us to lead on matters that are really at the heart of the future we hope to share.

Moderator. (In Russian.)

Q. (In Russian.)

Foreign Minister Lavrov. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. We had a very long discussion about missile defense and we outlined for the minister and the other officials at the meeting the basis of our threat assessment, which President Obama ordered to be conducted upon taking office. And the conclusion we reached that the concerns about the ICBM development in Iran were not as urgent as new concerns regarding the short- and medium-term missiles that they are developing. The United States believes that it is better to be prepared and defended against possible aggressive offensive action by Iran or others who might develop such weapons, and therefore, the phased adaptive approach which we have outlined is intended to protect against that threat.

We have shared this with our Russian colleagues. Our experts are going through all of the details, because we would like to see the United States and Russian collaborate closely on missile defense. We think it is in our mutual interest. We believe it is something that, given our respective nations' technological expertise, could be important for the rest of the world.

And as Minister Lavrov said, we want to ensure that every question that the Russian military or the Russian Government asks, we answer. We have invited your leading experts to our missile command and control center in Colorado Springs. We want to be as transparent as possible, because this is important so that we agree on the common threat and we agree as to how we will address that common threat. And we see this as yet another area for deeper cooperation between our countries.

Q. On Iran, what did you ask the minister with regard to pressure and sanctions, and did you receive any assurances?

And for the minister, if I could ask, your president has said that sanctions are inevitable. Do you still believe that to be the case? Thank you.

Secretary Clinton. Well, again, with respect to Iran, we had a lengthy conversation. We reviewed the outcome of the October 1^st meeting. The United States has always had a dual-track approach to Iran where we made it clear we wanted to pursue the engagement and diplomatic track. And the very strong, united approach that has been taken in the P-5+1 which, of course, includes the United States and Russia, we think is making an impact on Iran. Iran has several obligations that it said it would fulfill. We believe it is important to pursue the diplomatic track and to do everything we can to make it successful.

We believe that Iran is entitled to peaceful nuclear energy, but that it is not entitled to nuclear weapons. Russia agrees with us on that. At the same time that we are very vigorously pursuing this track, we are aware that we might not be as successful as we need to be. So we have always looked at the potential of sanctions in the event that we are not successful, that we cannot assure ourselves and others that Iran has decided not to pursue nuclear weapons.

I think what President Medvedev said was that they may be inevitable, not that they are inevitable. He said that they're not always preferable, but they may be inevitable. But we are not at that point yet. That is not a conclusion we have reached, and we want to be very clear that it is our preference that Iran work with the international community, as represented by the P-5+1, fulfill its obligation on inspections, in fact, open up its entire system so that there can be no doubt about what they're doing, and comply with the agreement in principle to transfer out the low-enriched uranium. Those would be confidence-building measures, and that would give us an opportunity to take stock of where we are on the diplomatic track.

Foreign Minister Lavrov. (In Russian.)

Moderator. (In Russian.)

Q. (In Russian.)

Foreign Minister Lavrov. (In Russian.)

Mr. Kelly. And the last question to Mary Beth Sheridan from The Washington Post.

Q. Thank you. Minister Lavrov, a question for you. The U.S. is interested in gaining more Russian support for the effort in Afghanistan. You've allowed these U.S. overflights. Are you prepared to also provide other support, and specifically what?

And two questions, if I may, for Secretary Clinton. One is that it sounds like you did not get the commitment from the Russian side in terms of sanctions or other forms of pressure that could be brought to bear on Iran. Could you comment on that?

And second question: Are you considering loosening sanctions on North Korea to get the Six-Party Talks going? Thank you.

Foreign Minister Lavrov. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. Mary Beth, as I said, we are actively pursuing the engagement track. We have two outstanding obligations plus another meeting upcoming between the P-5+1 and the Iranians. It is not any surprise to anyone, as I stated earlier, that in the absence of significant progress and assurance that Iran is not pursuing nuclear weapons, we will be seeking to rally international opinion behind additional sanctions.

But Russia has been extremely cooperative in the work that we have done together. Back at the United Nations General Assembly, Minister Lavrov and I were at a meeting together with the P-5+1 ministers, where a very strong statement was issued. In that statement, it said that other actions will have to be considered in the absence of Iranian meeting—Iran meeting its obligations. So we didn't ask for anything today. We reviewed the situation and where it stood, which I think was the appropriate timing for what this process entails.

We have absolutely no intention of relaxing or offering to relax North Korean sanctions at this point whatsoever. As you know, we're looking to restart the Six-Party process. Sergey and I talked about that. We continue to believe it is the best way forward. We may use some bilateral discussions to help get that process going, but that is not in any way linked to relaxing any sanctions whatsoever.

Moderator. (In Russian.) Thank you.

Secretary HillaryClinton delivered these remarks following a tour of Boeing Design Center in Moscow, Russia

Secretary Clinton. Thank you so much, Sergey. And this is a very exciting visit for me. I feel like I should apologize to all of the engineers because we're interrupting their legendary 24-hour workday. Because of the connections with Wichita and Seattle, they literally work around the clock, and it shows in terms of the productivity and the results.

I want to thank you very much, Sergey, for giving me this tour. And if enthusiasm were marketable, he would be a blue chip stock—because he is so devoted and excited about what is happening here, and so am I, because this does illustrate the kind of closer collaboration that we're seeking to encourage between American companies and Russian companies, between American experts and Russian experts—in this case engineers—who are among the very best in the world. And because they are now part of this multinational effort, they can produce extraordinary products like this Dreamliner.

I really want to thank our ambassador, who is a strong supporter of this effort, Ambassador Beyrle. And if you looked at the pictures, you saw a former ambassador, Bill Burns. So this has been a consistent commitment on the part of the United States Government here in Moscow to promote this, because it really does illustrate very powerfully what we can do together.

I'm excited about the new Dreamliner. I can't wait to see it in action for myself. But we also can maybe celebrate some of the less tangible results of this partnership. The engineers who work here—1,400 of them—not only to help drive technological progress, but they promote shared prosperity for each of our nations, and indeed for the world as a whole. The contributions go way beyond building and improving Boeing aircraft. It really fosters collaboration that ranges from joint ventures, some of which are explained in the promotional material, as well as the titanium-focused work that has been done here. Russia produces the titanium for these airliners. As Sergey was explaining to me, this is a composite. It's the first time that an airline will ever be made out of composite and not aluminum, right? And I've been trying to break this. I can't do it. It feels very strong and durable to me.

But these knowledge-based jobs, particularly in a country like Russia which has such a highly educated population, and particularly in the sciences and engineering, really in the STEM subjects—science, technology, engineering, mathematics—it's just a treasure trove of potential for the Russian economy. I've heard President Medvedev talk about how he wants to see the Russian economy become more knowledge-based. The commodities are a great engine for the economy, but I think he's really looking to the future when he talks about more knowledge-based jobs like those that we see here. It does provide a win-win. The bi-national commission that we've set up is looking for win-wins. We just don't think that zero-sum politics works in the 21^st century. We're too interconnected, we're too interdependent. So we're going to see a lot of cooperation that comes out of a better understanding and appreciation of what each of our countries can contribute.

I also want to thank the Export-Import Bank of the United States. They have a long history of supporting exports to Russia, including the sale of aircraft. And we're delighted that a new Russian airline, Rosavia, is actively considering the acquisition of Boeing Aircraft. And this is a shameless pitch for Rosavia—I've said what you wanted me to say, Sergey—to buy Boeing Aircraft. Right? The ExIm Bank would welcome an application for financing from Rosavia to support its purchase of Boeing Aircraft, and I hope that on a future visit I'll see a lot of new Rosavia-Boeing planes when I land in Moscow.

I feel so positive about our relationship. And as I said earlier with Minister Lavrov, we know this is not easy. We know that we've got work to do on both sides. But it is models like this that give me a lot of conviction that we're on the right track. During his last visit to Moscow in July, President Obama said that when our economies grow more intertwined, all of us can make progress. And I can't think of a better illustration than what we see here at the Boeing Design Center.

So, Sergey, again thank you. Thank you for this great collaboration and your leadership and your enthusiasm in making it happen. Thank you.

Q. You mentioned Rosavia.

Secretary Clinton. Yes.

Q. And I'm curious if in your discussions today with Russians officials whether or not you got any indication that the decision has been made for Boeing. There was a newspaper report today that the government has been leaning towards getting a contract (inaudible). And secondly, after your meeting with the civil rights—with the Civil Society today, could you just spell out what U.S. strategy is on human rights and democracy in Russia, and how do you follow up on what you've heard there?

Secretary Clinton. Well, in terms of Rosavia, we have representatives from that company here. We obviously hope that Boeing is their selection. We think we have a great collaboration. We think that the work done by the Russian engineers here in this Design Center enables whatever planes that are bought to be first-rate and exactly what is needed in terms of the internal domestic Russian market. But obviously, we're hoping, but we'll have to see what the eventual decision is.

Q. No indications?

Secretary Clinton. Well, we're hoping. We have reason to hope. But it's not done till it's done. I'm going to opera tonight. We say at home, it's not over till the fat lady sings, so I guess we'll wait until we hear the singing from Rosavia.

The question you asked deserves a much more thoughtful and longer answer than is really possible right now. But clearly, we believe strongly that Russia's future is extraordinarily positive. Productivity, economic prosperity, sustainable progress is all within reach. But we know from experience not only in our own country, but looking historically around the world, that greater political freedom, more accountable government, respect for human rights, an independent judiciary, a free and vigilant press really goes hand-in-hand with the kind of economic openness and innovation that is what's required in the 21^st century economy.

So it's not only because we believe that universal values support human rights being recognized and respected, but we think that it's in the best interest for economic growth and political stability. So we believe that. We make that argument. We are encouraged by many of the comments that the president has made. I'll see him in a few minutes and we'll talk in more detail about how a lot of his vision will be translated into action. Thank you.

Secretary Hillary Clinton delivered these remarks at a town hall meeting at Moscow State University in Moscow, Russia

Secretary Clinton. I am very pleased to have this opportunity not only to speak, but also to listen. I am delighted to be back here again to this distinguished university where I first visited about 14 years ago with my husband. I return now in 2009, in the 21^st century, to exemplify the commitments that the United States and the Obama Administration have to work as closely with not only the Russian Government, but with the people of Russia. As President Obama has said, we want a Russia that is prosperous, peaceful, and strong. And we want to be your partner in helping to address some of the most difficult challenges that the world faces.

Sometimes our messages to one another are lost in translation. But at the core, we believe strongly that the United States and Russia must be partners, not only for the future of our own country and our own people, but indeed, to the world. If you look around our planet today, you see a spectacular array of challenges—from threats to global security to economic crisis to a fragile environment. Amid that landscape, Russia stands out as a country of almost unlimited talents and potential. I believe our world will be a vastly better place if the intellectual energy that resides in both our countries is focused on working together to address these common economy's challenges.

In some areas that is already happening. Our partnership has helped prevent the spread of nuclear arms. We are committed to reducing our weapons stockpile. We have cooperated in the fight against terrorism. We need to continue to build on what we have done. But what really matters is the spirit of innovation and ingenuity that drives real progress that resides in a place such as this great university.

Q. Good morning, Ms. Clinton. My name is (inaudible), and I'm a second-year student. First of all (inaudible) I'm sorry. Let me, first of all, thank you for (inaudible). And I would like to ask you a question regarding the aspects of Russia-American partnership. Which of them, in your opinion, are presently the top priority (inaudible) economic (inaudible) financial crisis or military? Thank you.

Secretary Clinton. Well, let me describe for you what our two presidents have agreed, and I think it's very significant. We have created a Binational Commission, and we have 16 working groups under that commission. The commission, of course, is chaired by our presidents, and then Foreign Minister Lavrov and I coordinate it. If you look at our 16 working groups, we have economic issues, energy issues, defense and strategic issues. We also have health issues, education issues, sports, and culture issues.

What we are trying to do is to look as comprehensively as possible at the potential for our relationship. And so therefore, the two issues you mentioned, military and economic, are very important. But that's not the only way we want to define our relationship. I think in the past, it's been too narrowly defined. And I think that's been a loss for both of our countries. So for example, on the military and defense side, you know this debate we've had about missile defense. And I want to explain this to you as an illustration of how the Obama Administration is approaching this issue differently. Missile defense is an effort to protect people from the real threats that exist in the world. We do not see a threat between the United States and Russia. There are disagreements from time to time, but we do not see a threat. What we do see as a threat are nuclear weapons in the hands of countries or networks of terrorists who feel that they have either nothing to lose or have such a different world view that they might actually trigger a nuclear conflict.

So when President Obama came into office, he ordered a review of what the prior administration had planned in terms of missile defense in Europe. And in our review, here is what we concluded. We concluded a nuclear-armed Iran would cause a threat to greater Europe, to Western Russia as well as to Eastern Europe and Western Europe. We concluded that their threat, however, was not what the prior administration had evaluated in the previous eight years, because they had been worried about Iran developing intercontinental ballistic missiles, longer-range missiles. Iran has not moved as quickly on longer-range missiles as they have on short- and medium-range missiles. So we, therefore, said let's plan for missile defense to meet the threat that currently exists. So we decided to eliminate the prior administration's plans, and instead to develop what we call a phased, adaptive approach that is aimed at preventing short- and medium-range missiles. And we shared this with our Russian colleagues, and we did it because we thought it was the right thing to do. But we also hope that missile defense is an area where Russia and the United States can cooperate together.

In our negotiations over lowering nuclear weapons and in our negotiations and discussions over missile defense, we are very open to transparency and to cooperation. In fact, when it comes to the START treaty that's being negotiated, when it comes to missile defense, we have invited your top military experts and scientists to come to our command and control centers to ask every question that they have, and we would like to do the same because we want there to be a common understanding. So in this Binational Commission, that is the approach we are taking.

Now, I will be the first to tell you that we have people in our government, and you have people in your government, who are still living in the past. They do not believe that the United States and Russia can cooperate to this extent. They do not trust each other. And we have to prove them wrong. That is our goal. Our goal is to be as cooperative as we can. And it would be, in my view, a very positive outcome if someday in the future you see the United States and Russia announcing a joint plan on missile defense, that we will have sensors and radars and whatever other technology is needed in a way to protect what we hold dear, which is our homelands and those with whom we have so much in common.

The biggest immediate threat the world faces are nuclear weapons under the control of groups of people who do not value the future, who have a different set of world views, who are on the side of death instead of life, who believe martyrdom or suicide attacks are a positive way to end one's life. That is not Russia, and that is not the United States. Those aren't our values. That is not who we are. So I think we have so many reasons to work together to protect what we value, and this is one of the most important areas of the cooperation that we're looking for in the Binational Commission.

Q. (Inaudible) Madame Secretary of State (inaudible) and also for the rousing and thought-provoking speech you gave. And I would like to ask the question regarding the issues we still have (inaudible) despite the general improvement of our relations, and more precisely, the Georgia case. What ways of resolving this conflict would you propose? Thank you.

Secretary Clinton. I'm glad you asked that because this is an area where we have a disagreement. And we have been very candid in expressing our concerns and listening to the Russian concerns. I think that it's very important that neither the Georgians nor the South Ossetians nor the Abkhazians do anything provocative. And we have told that to the Georgians, and I am confident that the Russian Government has told that to the people of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.

It is a very difficult set of relationships at work in Georgia. But the first and most important goal must be to make sure there's no more conflict. If there are problems to be resolved, they should be put within the diplomatic political arena and to avoid any further military action whatsoever. Therefore, we believe that it's important to have a constant presence of observers and peacekeepers so that there is no basis or no room for something that would lead to further bloodshed to occur. In my meetings with Minister Lavrov, we have discussed how we can perhaps go back to the drawing boards to create a status-neutral approach to create that kind of buffer zone, that kind of observer position through Geneva, through the UN, through the OSCE.

But this is an issue that we see differently, and I think it's important that we talk through this. When I became Secretary of State, the relationship between NATO and Russia had been broken off. The NATO-Russia Council had stopped meeting because of the very strong feelings that many people had about what happened in Georgia. And my position was you may disagree with—about what happened in Georgia, but we shouldn't stop talking. We have to keep talking. So we have reinstated the NATO-Russia Council so that we can have a forum so that the United States and Russia will constantly be in communication when something happens that could be a serious challenge to our relationship. So this is something we're going to have to keep watching and working on. And I hope that we are able to keep it calm and keep everybody focused on the future and figure out how we can try to come to some resolution of what is a very difficult set of circumstances.

But in general, I think that on most issues we are working well together. Just last week in Zurich, Minister Lavrov and I worked to help ensure that Turkey and Armenia signed a protocol to normalize their relationships, and that was a very significant level of cooperation. Now, we're working to try to help resolve the dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

So where we have a disagreement, as we do over Georgia, it should not end everything. We should work together. We should try to see where we could end up, working through that disagreement while we continue to try to solve other problems. And that's my approach to it, and I think that's the kind of new attitude that we're bringing to our relationship.

Secretary Hillary Clinton delivered these remarks in Moscow, Russia at the unveiling of a Walt Whitman Monument

Secretary Clinton. Thank you and good morning. I am very pleased and honored to be back here on the campus of this great university. I thank the director, the faculty, and the students not only for the work they do every day, but for representing the very best of the excellence in education here in Russia.

I'm also pleased to be here with the mayor, whom I last saw at the dedication of the World War II memorial from years ago, and to be here with my colleague, Minister Lavrov. I want to thank all of the Russian officials, the sculptor and architect and others, and I want to thank former congressman Jim Symington, who has spearheaded this effort on the American side.

I think that both the mayor and Minister Lavrov and Jim Symington have very well said the significance of the placement of this statue here today of Walt Whitman. It is reciprocal for the statue 10 years ago of Alexander Pushkin that was placed on the campus of The George Washington University in Washington, D.C., very close to the White House and the State Department.

I agree with Minister Lavrov that just as Pushkin and Whitman reset poetry, we are resetting our relationship for the 21^st century. And that relationship is not just between our two governments, but most importantly, it is between the Russians and American people. Whitman recognized that we have so much in common, and if I could, I just want to draw your attention to the quote that was chosen that is on the base of the sculpture. And here is what it says: “You Russians and we Americans, so far apart from each other, so seemingly different, and yet in ways that are most important, our countries are so alike.”

What Whitman understood all those years ago is something that President Obama and I believe strongly. And we need to continue to work to make sure we find common ground on behalf of the Russian and American people, and that our two great nations help to lead the world in the 21^st century for greater peace, prosperity, and progress. Thank you very much.

Secretary Hillary Clinton was interviewed by Ekho Moskvy Radio in Moscow, Russia

Q. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. Good morning.

Q. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. Well, first, I would ask them, please, to recognize that President Obama is very committed and very sincere about working together with President Medvedev and with Russia. Obviously, this is challenging for many reasons, but I think the 68 percent who answered yes understand that Russia and the United States have so much in common that we need to be working more closely together. And we have an opportunity with our two presidents to really forge a new relationship, and that's what we're working for.

Q. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. Yes, I do, and we have evidence of that. During the United Nations General Assembly, I attended a meeting with Minister Lavrov, Minister Yang from China, as long—as well as our other counterparts. We agreed to a very strong statement that basically told Iran that the international community expects Iran to fulfill its obligations and responsibilities. And in it, we said we want to pursue engagement and diplomacy, but it might not work. It is our preference, but as President Medvedev said, sometimes sanctions and pressure are inevitable. So we are pursuing that.

And then at the October 1st meeting in Geneva, among the P-5+1, very important steps were agreed to. Number one, Iran agreed to open its covert facility to inspection. Number two, they agreed in principle to ship out their low-enriched uranium, actually to Russia, to be reprocessed. Number three, that there would be another meeting shortly after to continue this important dialogue. So I think that we've come a long way in the last six months.

Now how we get to where we're going, which is the goal of preventing Iran from being a nuclear weapons power—they are entitled to peaceful nuclear energy, but they are not entitled to nuclear weapons. And so we have to continue to work closely together, and we are. And President Medvedev reaffirmed that yesterday.

Q. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. What we are doing is negotiating a new START agreement to reduce our nuclear arsenals. As part of that agreement, we do want a system of verification, and verification would include visits by our respective experts to one another's facilities. Again, we are open to this. We want to make sure that Russia knows that we are complying with the agreement and, as we say, vice versa; we want to have that level of verification. So that's part of what's being negotiated. We hope to have this agreement done by its deadline of December 5^th.

Q. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. That's our goal, because the current agreement, the current START agreement expires December 5^th. So we want to have a new agreement to be able to replace it.

Q. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. I do, and I was very encouraged. President Medvedev said let's get it done. In fact, he said our negotiators should go to Geneva and they should be locked in a room until they finish negotiating and come out with the agreement. And we said okay, we'll tell them to pack a big suitcase.

Q. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. Well, no decisions have been made, and what ideally we would like to do is to cooperate jointly with Russia on missile defense. You see, we believe that the threats in the future come from countries and terrorists who are not responsible stewards of the enormous power of destruction that nuclear weapons represent. They may not even be deterrable.

Remember, during the worst of the Cold War, the United States, and then, the Soviet Union, we never stopped talking about nuclear arms. We never stopped communicating. We might have gotten too close to the line, but we always pulled back. And we kept the world from suffering from such terrible weapons.

Missile defense is meant to protect people from the ambitions that some places like Iran may have or al-Qaida may have. So when we did a review of what the prior administration had decided about missile defense in Europe, we concluded it didn't meet the threat that we were worried about. We do not believe Russia and the United States pose a threat to one another. What we believe is that these other actors pose threats to both of us.

So we have offered for the closest cooperation between the United States and Russia. We would be happy to be making these decisions jointly with Russia. So we haven't made final decisions at all, but we've changed what we are doing because we think it is more reflective of the real threat we face.

Q. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. Yes, and I have no reason to believe at all that anything would be deployed in Georgia. No, I have no reason to believe that, and that is, I know, a matter of great concern to the Russian Federation. But again, that's why we would like to work with—we would like to eliminate the concerns. We would like to have a joint missile defense program to protect our people, your people, our European friends and allies, to put as broad a missile defense system so that we can guard against short and medium-range missile that might have nuclear weapons.

Q. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. We talked about Georgia. Now we do have a difference there, and even though we are working hard to not just reset our relationship, but deepen our relationship, we will disagree about Georgia. Georgia is providing troops in Afghanistan. We are training Georgians to be able to go to Afghanistan. But we're also making it very clear that we expect both the Georgians and the South Ossetians and the Abkhazians and everyone else to avoid provocative action, to deal with whatever problems they have through peaceful and diplomatic means.

Q. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. Minister Lavrov did not ask me that question, but we will help the Georgian people to feel like they can defend themselves.

Q. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. Well, I think he knew the answer.

Q. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. No, not at all. Yesterday at Spaso House, I was honored to address a group of activists on behalf of civil society, democracy, anticorruption, human rights, and very clearly said the United States stands by our values. We support those who are struggling on behalf of the universal rights of men and women and who want to see their country improve and become even stronger and better. So we are very clearly committed to supporting people who are democracy advocates in every sense of the world.

We also believe that we can have a broader, more effective relationship, government-to-government, than perhaps the prior administration did, because we think we have a lot to work on together. We also think we need to do more people-to-people. I think that there are some misunderstandings that are sometimes held by the Russian people about what we are doing and why we are advocating for certain actions.

But I have no doubt in my mind that democracy is in Russia's best interests, that respecting human rights, an independent judiciary, a free media are in the interests of building a strong, stable political system that provides a platform for broadly shared prosperity. We will continue to say that and we will continue to support those who also stand for those values.

Q. (In Russian.)

Secretary Clinton. I mentioned the names—I mentioned the killings of journalists, and I said that this is a matter of grave concern not just to the United States, but to the people of Russia, and not just to the activists, but to people who worry that unsolved killings are a very serious challenge to order and to the fair functioning of society, and that we did not believe that enough was being done to make sure that no one had impunity from prosecution who might have been involved in any such criminal acts.

President Barack Obama and President Dmitry Medvedev delivered these remarks in Copenhagen, Denmark

President Obama. Obviously our main concern in coming to Copenhagen was to try to move forward with an accord on the issue of climate change. But on the margins of this meeting we thought it was important to continue to build on the excellent relationship that our two governments have developed over the last several months.

Our main focus today was the START treaty—the new START treaty that we have been negotiating. We've been making excellent progress. We are quite close to an agreement. And I'm confident that it will be completed in a timely fashion. And I just want to thank President Medvedev for being a very effective partner in these negotiations.

And we wish him a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

President Medvedev. For my part as an effective partner of President Obama, I will say all the same, but using different words, as the custom that we have in our diplomatic practice.

That's true that we arrived in Copenhagen not to have this bilateral meeting, but to move forward all the whole range of climate issues, and in this respect our work is not over. But on the other hand, it would be unreasonable not to use this opportunity in order to—not to discuss what we've been doing for the recent days or the recent time in a very coordinated and persistent manner. And I would like to thank Mr. Obama and the U.S. negotiating team. I am talking about a new treaty on the reductions of strategic arms.

And our positions are very close and almost all the issues that we've been discussing for the last month are almost closed. And there are certain technical details which we can encounter many agreements which require further work. I hope that we will be able to do it in a quite brief period of time. The outcome of our efforts will reflect good and close spirit of our relationship that we have established with the new U.S. administration.

And I would like to say Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you.

President Obama. Thank you, everybody.

Statement by National Security Council Spokesman Mike Hammer on the detention of human rights activists in Russia

The United States expresses dismay at reports that authorities in Moscow prevented Russian citizens from exercising their right to assemble peacefully. In particular, the United States notes with concern the detention of protestors, including prominent human rights defender Lyudmila Alekseyeva, and reports of their mistreatment by authorities while in custody. Freedom of speech and assembly are universal rights that all governments should recognize and defend. The United States stands with those dedicated to promoting these human rights.