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Bush will cut off aid to Russia until it reforms
FROM BEN MACINTYRE IN WASHINGTON
GEORGE W. BUSH gave warning yesterday that he intends to cut off funding
aimed at stimulating a market economy in Russia until major reforms are
carried out there.
The President-elect rejected the Clinton Administration�s policy of using
direct financial aid to encourage Russia�s conversion to a market economy.
He indicated that he would try to stop the flow of money, except where it is
used to dismantle nuclear weapons, until President Putin tackles widespread
corruption and enacts substantial economic and legal reforms.
�It just seems like to me that we don�t want to be lending money and/or
encouraging the lending of money into a system in which the intention of the
capital is never fulfilled,� he told The New York Times in a wide-ranging
interview laying out several themes of his future administration before
Saturday�s inauguration.
�The intent of the capital was to encourage entrepreneurship and markets,�
he said, after dismissing Mr Clinton�s eight-year effort to push Russia
towards reform with financial aid.
Since 1992 the United States has spent about $2.3 billion (£1.5 billion)
promoting democratic development and market reforms in Russia. The
International Monetary Fund and the World Bank have issued loans worth $30
billion.
In another sign of the new administration�s tough stance, Mr Bush said he
was prepared for Russia and China to object to the building of a National
Missile Defence (NMD) but had no intention of backing down. �We�ve just got
to explain why we are doing what we are doing,� he said.
Moscow and Beijing are working on a friendship pact, reflecting their shared
unhappiness with American plans to build a shield against ballistic missile
attack, but Mr Bush insisted that neither power had anything to fear. �The
Chinese know and the Russians know that there will be no system developed in
the immediate future, or the foreseeable future is a better word, that can
conceivably intercept a multiple launch of missiles,� he said.
Just one week before he is inaugurated, Mr Bush signalled that he may try to
reverse some of Mr Clinton�s final actions, most notably his efforts to
place 60 million acres of forest beyond developers� reach. �There�s going to
be some property in these giant chunks of land that we can use and not
damage the environment,� he said, reflecting the views of many, particularly
in the West, who say the Clinton Administration is riding roughshod over
their land rights.
�I understand the Western mentality, and I want the Western mentality
represented in this administration,� Mr Bush said, adding that his legal
advisers were exploring the possibilities of reversing some of Mr Clinton�s
recent executive orders. �We�ve got lawyers looking at every single issue,
every single opportunity.�
In another move that will delight his conservative base, Mr Bush said that
he was inclined to stop any taxpayers� money from going to family planning
groups that encourage abortions abroad. �Organisations that promote abortion
are organisations I don�t want to support,� Mr Bush said. Mr Clinton signed
an order allowing such private groups to receive federal funds two days
after entering the White House in 1993. Mr Bush appears likely to move just
as quickly to block any money that could be used to perform or encourage
abortions in other countries.
Mr Bush gave no hint of compromise on another of his key policy
initiatives � his planned $1.6 billion tax cut over the next ten years.
Asked if he was prepared to negotiate on the size of the tax-reduction
package, the President-elect was blunt: �The answer is �no�. I think it�s
the right number.�
The man who will soon be America�s 43rd President said that he hoped to keep
his inaugural address to just 12 minutes next Saturday, with the message:
�We can be a unified America� � a theme which, he insisted, is not related
to the narrowness of his victory and the divisive, post-election struggle
with Vice-President Al Gore.
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