Gorbachev calls for nations to cooperate

Mikhail Gorbachev, the Soviet leader who sought to put an end to the Cold War and found a partner for peace in Ronald Reagan, said Monday what the world needs now is more national leaders willing to collaborate on the big problems, rather than unilaterally seeking solutions.

A few days ago, Gorbachev said he had a brief meeting with President Barack Obama and a longer meeting with Vice President Joe Biden.

“I’ve become more optimistic about relations between our two nations,” Gorbachev said.

Good relations between Russia and the United States are a key to peace in the 21st century, said Gorbachev, whose summits with Reagan helped introduce the words “glasnost” — liberalization or opening up — and “perestroika” — economic restructuring — to America.

He took a brief swipe at the administration of President George W. Bush, which he said had been “dismissive” of Russia.

Asked by an audience member what he regrets most for failing to accomplish, Gorbachev said not being able to complete the process of perestroika, or moving more fully toward a market economy.

He attributed that to “reckless, adventurous people” in Russia and elsewhere.

“We came close to creating market-based democracy,” but the process was hurt by the “scheming and intriguing” of Boris Yeltsin, he told a packed house at the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, who assembled for the Ringling College Library Association Town Hall series.

Yeltsin would later be elected as president of Russia.

While Gorbachev said he was unable to accomplish all of the reforms he might have hoped for, he was able to bring Russia to a “point of no return” in the way it did business.

“I believe we are about halfway down the road to democratic transition,” he said, adding that Russian democracy will have unique, specific features.

Gorbachev gave high marks to Vladimir Putin for helping lead Russia out of a time of great hardship, and stabilize the Russian economy, military and government.

It was unseemly that some in the West applauded Yeltsin and a weakened Russia, Gorbachev said.

“Our people didn’t like a weakened Russia. I think we need to learn from this lesson,” he said.

Gorbachev called for the world’s nations to collaborate on the global financial system, “which is out of date.”

“We need to address it together,” he said of the worldwide recession.

He called the economic difficulties severe, but said “we will pull through. We will pull ourselves out of this crisis.”

Gorbachev said it is in no country’s interest for the United States to fail to resolve its crisis. “It would be bad for everybody,” he said.

Asked how he would like to be remembered, Gorbachev said he would leave that to historians to decide, some 50 or 100 years in the future.

“History is a fickle lady,” he said.

The former Soviet leader noted that first-brush assessments are often wrong. Gorbachev said his first impression of Reagan was “he is a real dinosaur,” while Reagan reportedly initially considered Gorbachev a “die-hard Bolshevik.”

Bradenton.com // 24.03.2009