Thank you Mr. Chairman for convening this hearing today entitled, "Human Rights and U.S.-Russia Relations: Implications for the Future." 

While we are appropriately following with great interest the events of the Middle East, we need to keep a focus on Russia.  It is in our interest to maintain good relations with Russia;  there are many areas in which both our nations can benefit from cooperation.   The civilized world faces a whole host of problems, especially international terrorism, and Russia’s assistance in this battle is vital.   Yet we must not abandon our own principles – our commitment to human rights and democratic governance -- in favor of a less than candid relationship.   

Russia today is enjoying a political and economic resurgence much of which is fueled by high prices on energy sources and the personal popularity of President Putin. “Russia is back,” so to speak and -- let’s be frank – not especially receptive to criticism on human rights from the United States.  President Putin clearly demonstrated this during the G-8 summit recently in St. Petersburg.  Let me add, parenthetically, that when our government comments on other countries’ human rights practices, we should certainly strive to observe international human rights standards at home and not provide ammunition to repressive governments trying to change the subject.

Bismark is reputed to have said “Russia is never as weak or as strong as she looks,” and that description may apply to the human rights picture in Russia today.  Honest individuals can disagree.  Nevertheless, there’s no doubt the trajectory has been downward.  And there have been real victims:  Igor Sutyagin,  Mikhail Trepashkin, and Mikhail  Khodorkovsky,  come to mind.  There may be others, whose cases are less known, who have been incarcerated under questionable circumstance.

Moreover, the Russian government sometimes appears to go out of its way to look bad, even though it has hired a U.S.-headquartered public relations firm to make it look good.  According to a recent report issued by Russian legal activists, “577 activists and rights protesters were ‘harassed, intimidated, or unlawfully detained’ during the G-8 summit.” According to the German newspaper “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung,” Russian police beat a German journalist and detained two others for trying to report on anti-G-8 protests.  This is clearly not the sort of policy on freedom of speech, or freedom of assembly, that one would expect from a member of the G-8. 

In this connection, I am particularly concerned about apparent efforts to neutralize the activities of NGOs whom the Kremlin sees as political opposition.  It is my understanding that the registration requirements in the new NGO law may prove so onerous that many NGOs may have to cease their existence. NGOs are an essential element of a vibrant and productive society, and I would urge President Putin to live up to his promise to press for liberalization of the NGO law if it threatens to cripple NGOs and civil society. In the long run, Russia’s prosperity will not depend upon high oil prices but on the productivity and dedication of its citizenry.  As a former KGB operative, Mr. Putin should be aware that political repression leads to economic and social stagnation, which were major causes of the collapse of the Soviet Union.

It will not be easy to balance honest concern about human rights in Russia with our genuine desire to work with the Russians for the betterment of our citizens and the international community.  It will be a real challenge.  As a newly elected Vice President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, I look forward to increasing cooperation with our Russian colleagues, but it will be more difficult if Russia does not live up to its basic human rights commitments it made as a Participating State of the OSCE.

The world has become a dangerous place, whether in Manhattan or Beslan.  I hope we can work together on the basis of shared principles and mutual respect.