Is It All Bill Clinton's Fault?

The documents, published by the non-profit research organization National Security Archive at George Washington University, include notes taken by diplomat and translator Strobe Talbott, then U.S. Deputy Secretary of State and a fluent Russian speaker, during a meeting between Clinton and Putin at the Kremlin in June 2000.According to the records, Clinton assured Putin that NATO&rsquo;s eastward expansion posed no threat to Moscow and even expressed openness to the possibility of Russia joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.&quot;From the very beginning of NATO&rsquo;s expansion, I knew it could be a problem for Russia. I understood that, and I want everyone to understand that NATO expansion does not threaten Russia in any way,&quot; Clinton said.He further stressed: &quot;If our successors focus on each other as the main threat, they will miss the opportunity to work together to solve common problems.&quot;Yet, the declassified documents note that the very next day, Clinton was &ldquo;much less open on this issue.&rdquo;Clinton Called for Cooperation on Bin LadenThe documents also reveal that Clinton urged closer cooperation between Washington and Moscow in the hunt for terrorist leader Osama bin Laden.&quot;As far as the United States is concerned, we face a more direct threat from Bin Laden. That is where Russia and the United States need a coordinated strategy. Airstrikes will not be effective. We must bring our people together to prepare a comprehensive approach to fighting bin Laden,&quot; Clinton reportedly said.Putin&rsquo;s Retrospective ViewSputnik, which reported on the declassified documents, recalls that in a February 2024 interview with U.S. journalist Tucker Carlson, Putin claimed Russia could have become a NATO member in the early 2000s if Washington had shown genuine interest.The Russian president voiced a similar position in February 2022, when he recounted his conversation with Clinton. According to Putin, the U.S. leader was &ldquo;cold&rdquo; toward the idea of Russia joining the alliance.

Is It All Bill Clinton's Fault?

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