Russian State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin would like to hope that a more constructive US-Russian dialog will be possible when the newly-elected American president takes office.
According to early election returns, Trump received more than 270 votes in the Electoral College, which guarantees his ultimate election victory. His triumph came as a surprise, because pre-election polls had predicted Clinton’s comfortable victory with 4% advantage.
“Current Russian-US relations cannot be called friendly. One would like to hope that a more constructive dialog between the two countries will be possible when the new president takes office,” Volodin told parliamentary reporters. “The Russian parliament will welcome and support any steps along these lines.”
“It is important for us relations between our countries should be built on the basis of mutual respect and equitable partnership and cooperation should benefit both sides,” Volodin said. “Only in that case we will be able to take our relations to a new level matching the interests of the two peoples.”
Volodin recalled the Russian side had invariably stressed the idea that the presidential election was an exclusively internal affair of the United States and that Russia invariably respected the choice of the American people.
New page in Russian-US relations
The leader of the A Just Russia party in the State Duma, Sergei Mironov, hopes that Donald Trump’s presidency will turn a new page in Russian-US relations.
“It’s the choice of the American people. Russia will interact with the president the people of the United States will choose,” Mironov said.
“Let’s wait till the final returns. Donald Trump will take office in January. A new life will begin. I do hope that it will be a new page in relations between Russia and the United States,” Mironov told the media.
He recalled that Russia and the Soviet Union had always found it easier to clinch deals with the Republicans than with the Democrats. In particular, Mironov pointed out that Trump had no personal antagonism towards Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“Candidates’ election pledges are one thing and real life is something totally different,” Mironov said.
‘Cracks in ruling class’
Russia’s Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov believes that the initial results of the US presidential election show cracks in the country’s ruling class.
“What we have seen so far shows that the US ruling class is facing a crisis and also that social divisions have been deepening in the US, the stronghold of imperialism and capitalism,” Zyuganov stated.
At the same time, in his words, “no matter who becomes the next US president, be it Trump or Clinton, no major changes in Washington’s approach to Russia can be expected since the US strategy has been aimed at expansion for the last 200 years.” According to Zyuganov, Trump is bound to pursue the same policy. However, as the Russian communists’ leader noted, “if Trump adopts a course to strengthen his position inside the country, then it will be somewhat easier for us (Russia).”
Equal relations with Moscow
There is hope that the next US president will build equal relations with Moscow, the ruling United Russia party’s General Council Deputy Secretary Sergei Zheleznyak told reporters.
“We expect the newly elected US leader will abide by international laws while determining his foreign policy, and build relations with Russia and other countries showing respect for their national interests,” said Zheleznyak who is also Russia’s State Duma (lower house of parliament) Committee for International Affairs member.
Zheleznyak went on to say that “we respect the Americans’ choice and hope that we will succeed in establishing meaningful relations with the new US administration that would be based on equal dialogue and cooperation. Trump has been through a really tough campaign and he deserves to be congratulated on his victory,” the MP said.
Trump will cooperate with Russia in constructive way
Chairman of Russia’s State Duma (lower house of parliament) International Affairs Committee, Leonid Slutsky, has expressed the hope that Republican nominee Donald Trump will cooperate with Russia in a constructive manner if he wins the US election.
“If it is Donald Trump with his main slogan, “Make America Great Again”, then, in my opinion, America could again become great, if it observes the balance of forces and, together with us, advocates the development of a harmonious multi-polar world architecture of the 21st century,” Slutsky told reporters on Wednesday.
“Let’s hope that in the event of Donald Trump’s victory, his rhetoric will be implemented in a constructive manner towards constructive cooperation with Russia, Europe and the integration associations in big Eurasia,” the parliamentarian added.
‘Window of opportunity’ for improving Russian-US ties
According to head of Russia’s Federation Council (upper house of parliament) Committee for International Affairs Konstantin Kosachev, Donald Trump’s projected victory in the US presidential elections offers hope that Russian-US relations might improve.
The senator noted that he had doubted a Trump victory was possible until the very last moment since “the Americans have taught us that the system is always stronger.” Kosachev believes that Trump’s win “opens a window of opportunities”. At the same time he pointed out that “a window like that opened eight years ago when Obama won the election.” He had brought new hopes with him encouraging the Noble Committee to award him the Peace Prize but we all know how it all ended,” the senator resumed.
“Although hope remains, it hasn’t died yet. There is some hope for Russian-US relations though Trump may be stalled by the conservatives in Congress,” Kosachev stated. “In any case, this is better than the hopelessness of a Clinton America,” the senator concluded.
Head of the Federation Council Committee on Rules Vadim Tyulpanov, in turn, said that judging by the election results, the American people “have grown tired of the excessive aggression by the White House.” “The public can see that the current policy of US authorities is based on lies and a distortion of facts,” the senator noted.
“Donald Trump’s success means that US citizens want their country’s authorities to adopt a different domestic and foreign policy,” Tyulpanov noted. He believes that by voting for Trump, US citizens agree with his statement saying that the world needs to pool its efforts, to join efforts with Russia, in particular. “Trump’s projected victory gives hope that Russian-US relations will be genuinely reset and the two countries will move towards fruitful cooperation,” he concluded.
