(Igor Ivanov's tenure would influence Russian foreign policy strategy for many years to come)
In a press conference held in Moscow, the Minister of Foreign Affairs
, Igor Ivanov, expressed Russian support for Cyprus acquisition of the S-300 missiles, citing that Cyprus was an independent country and no foreign power had the right to decide where Cyprus made its purchases of military equipment, no matter their justification. Furthermore, Ivanov appealed to the United Nations for mediation between Turkey, Greece and Cyprus. Nevertheless, Russian support for Cyprus was ignored by the Turkish government. In July 1997, the Turkish Navy and the Turkish Coast Guard began to board and search vessels heading to Cyprus, including Russian-flagged vessels, in international waters. The situation alarmed not only the Greek Cypriots but also Athens and Moscow, as was evidenced by official statements in October 1997 indicating that Greece and Russia would engage in war with Turkey if Cyprus was attacked or blocked.
By September, reports began to surface in Greek and Cypriot media forums that Russia was in the process of mobilizing a large naval force with an aircraft carrier with long-range warplanes, a guided-missile cruiser and attack submarines. The presumption was that the force would have two purposes: to transport S-300 missiles and other military articles via Greek waters to Cyprus and to attack the Turkish Navy if it tried to intervene. At the end, Cyprus agreed to transfer the purchased S-300 systems to Greece in exchange for a significant quantity of short-range TOR-M1 missile systems and an undisclosed type of medium-range air defense missile systems. Greece also supplied Cyprus with twelve self-propelled 155-mm artillery howitzers as partial rental payment for the use of the S-300s. The missile crisis between Greece, Cyprus and Turkey led to closer diplomatic and economic relations between Russia and Greece and Cyprus. In the meantime, during his visit to Tehran, President Fyodor was able to successfully negotiate a number of treaties between Russia and Iran, including an economic, cultural, and military equipment purchase deal.
(Boris Nemtsov - new Russian Prime Minister and political superstar)
Legislative elections were held in Russia on 9 July 1997. To secure a place on the ballot, parties had to have registered with the Russian Ministry of Justice one year before the election (instead of six months in previous elections). As an alternative to gathering 200,000 signatures, they had the option of paying a deposit of just over two million roubles, returnable if the party won at least 3.0 percent of the list vote. In order to increase proportionality, the law provided that if parties reaching the five per cent threshold got in total 50 per cent or less of the vote, parties with at least 3.0 per cent of the vote would also win seats by declining numbers of votes up to the point at which the total share of vote exceeded 50 per cent.
However, if after this procedure the parties winning seats still had less than 50 per cent of the vote, the election was to be deemed invalid. In the single-member district ballots, if votes cast against all exceeded the votes of each candidate, a repeat election had to be held within four months. As a result, repeat elections had to be held in eight districts. Finally, as an alternative to gathering signatures in support of their nomination, single-member district candidates were also given the option of paying a deposit of 83,490 roubles, returnable if she won at least 5.0 percent of the district vote. The election was won by the largest opposition group, Union of Right Forces, which defeated the ruling United Labor Party of Russia. Throughout the campaign, polls showed conflicting results as to which of the two parties had the greater support, yet by the closing week the polls had swung in favour of Union of Right Forces, thanks to thanks to charismatic and energetic campaign led by
Boris Nemtsov, who soundly defeated Prime Minister Anatoly Sobchak in two televised debates.
Nemtsov ran his campaign on slogans of economic liberalization, decommunization, anti-corruption, deoligarchization of Russia, cooperation with the West, and the closer relations between the government and the Orthodox Church. Nemtsov often accused Prime Minister Sobchak of corruption and having too close ties with oligarchs, which corresponded to the public mood. Furthermore, Nemtsov accused the leadership of the United Labor Party of losing its identity, as the United Labor Party started as an anti-establishment party in opposition to the Soviet nomenklatura and bureaucrats, but only a few years later the party swapped roles and became the new corrupt ruling class and establishment.
1997 Russian legislative election:
Turnout: 83,31%
Union of Right Forces: 28.89%
United Labor Party of Russia: 27,88%
Yabloko: 15,62%
Communist Party of RF: 14,64%
Agrarian Party of Russia: 6,65%
Liberal Democratic Party of Russia: 5.23%
Other Parties/Invalid Votes: 1,16%
(Boris Netmsov with Boris Yeltsin during 1996 presidential campaign)
Boris Yefimovich Nemtsov was born in Sochi in 1959 to Yefim Davidovich Nemtsov and Dina Yakovlevna Nemtsova (née Eidman).His mother, a physician, is Jewish. Nemtsov was raised in Gorky, now Nizhny Novgorod. His parents divorced when he was five years old. In his autobiography, Nemtsov recounts that his Russian Orthodox paternal grandmother had him baptized as an infant, and that he became a practicing Orthodox Christian. He found out about his baptism many years later. From 1976 to 1981, Nemtsov studied physics at State University of Gorky in the city of Gorky, receiving a degree in 1981. Aged 25 in 1985, he defended his dissertation for a PhD in Physics and Mathematics from the State University of Gorky. Until 1990, he worked as a research fellow at the Radiophysical Research Institute, and produced more than 60 academic publications related to quantum physics, thermodynamics and acoustics. He proposed a theoretical model for an acoustic laser and a novel design of antennas for space probes. In the wake of the Chernobyl disaster in 1986, Nemtsov organized a protest movement in his hometown which effectively prevented construction of a nuclear-fired boiler plant in the region. In 1989, Nemtsov unsuccessfully ran for the Soviet Congress of People's Deputies on a reform platform which for the time was quite radical, promoting ideas such as multiparty democracy and private enterprise. In Russia's first free elections of 1990, he ran for the Supreme Soviet of the Russian Republic representing Gorky, later renamed Nizhny Novgorod. Nemtsov was elected, the only non-communist candidate. He defeated twelve others. Once in Parliament he joined the "Reform Coalition" and "Centre-Left" political groups.
In the Russian parliament, Nemtsov was on the legislative committee, working on agricultural reform and the liberalization of foreign trade. In this position he met Svyatoslav Fyodorov, who was impressed with his work. During the October 1991 attempted coup by Soviet hardliners, Nemtsov vehemently supported the president and stood by him during the entire clash. After those events, Fydorov rewarded Nemtsov's loyalty with the position of presidential representative in his home region of Nizhny Novgorod. In November 1991, Fyodorov appointed him Governor of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast. He was re-elected to that position by popular vote in December 1995. His tenure was marked by a wide-ranging, chaotic free market reform program nicknamed "Laboratory of Reform" for Nizhny Novgorod and resulted in significant economic growth for the region. Nemtsov's reforms won praise from former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who visited Nizhny Novgorod in 1993.
From the very outset of Nemtsov's tenure as governor, according to Serge Schmemann, Nemtsov "embarked on a whirlwind campaign to transform the region, drawing enthusiastic support from a host of Western agencies." Although the province was closed to foreigners for years and "there wasn't even enough paper money for the privatization program", he was optimistic about Moscow's future and consequently "pushed ahead on his own, even issuing his own money—chits, to be eventually exchanged for rubles that came to be known as 'Nemtsovki.'" Nemtsov very openly looked to the West as a model for Russia's future. Nemtsov, Schmemann observed, adopted the westernized title "Governor" rather than the Russian "Head of Administration". Leonid Bershidsky recalled meeting him in 1992 during his tenure as governor. "A brilliant young physicist", recounted Bershidsky, "he was trying to practice liberal economics in a gloomy Soviet-era industrial city that had long been off-limits to foreigners." Bershidsky described his eloquence and demeanor as that of "a Hollywood movie politician transplanted into the Russian hinterland
(Yegor Gaidar and Anatoly Chubais - creators of Yeltsin's and Nemtsov's economic strategy)
In 1996, Boris Nemtsov replaced a weakened and sickly Boris Yeltsin as leader of the opposition. In a short period of time, Nemtsov, together with
Anatoly Chubais, Sergey Kiriyenko and Yegor Gaidar reformed and reorganized his electoral bloc into the liberal-conservative Union of Right Forces. Boris Nemtsov's electoral victory did not automatically mean that he would become the next prime minister. To create a new government, Nemtsov needed allies to gain a majority in the Russian parliament. Furthermore, President Fyodorov immediately after the elections told Nemtsov and Sobchak, that he would not accept any government, which would include Grigory Yavlinsky or Genaddy Zugyanov, due to his personal conflicts with both of them. Fearing that President Fyodorov might call another election, Nemtsov agreed to form a coalition with the United Labor Party of Russia, but on the condition that he would become the next prime minister.
On the one hand, President Fyodorov agreed with Nemtsov's other conditions, namely, decommunization, closer cooperation with the Orthodox Church, reform of the judiciary system, and support for the establishment of a genuine civil society in Russia. On the other hand, Nemtsov agreed to the Eurasian direction of Russia's foreign policy, no mass privatization of state assets, and promised to leave Fyodorov's political and business allies (the Oligarchs) in peace for the time being.
(Alexander Lebed - new Minister of Defence and second most powerful man in the Union of Right Forces)
As a result of the elections, a number of changes took place in the Russian government, which included:
Boris Nemtsov – Prime Minister of Russia;
Anatoly Sobchak – First Deputy Prime Minister for Fuel-Energy complex;
Anatoly Chubais – Deputy Prime Minister for Finance, Economy and National Projects;
Yegor Gaidar – Deputy Prime Minister for Agro-Industrial Complex, Natural Resources and Ecology;
Sergey Kiriyenko – Deputy Prime Minister for Construction and Regional Development;
Dmitry Medvedev – Deputy Prime Minister and Chief of Staff of the Government;
Alexander Lebed – Minister of Defence;
Yevgeny Primakov – Minister of Foreign Affairs;
Vladimir Putin – Director of Federal Security Service.
(Poland together with Hungary, Czech Republic and Slovakia joined NATO in 1999)
In February 1991, Poland, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia formed the Visegrád Group to push for European integration under the European Union and NATO, as well as to conduct military reforms in line with NATO standards. Internal NATO reaction to these former Warsaw Pact countries was initially negative, but by the 1991 Rome summit in November, members agreed to a series of goals that could lead to accession, such as market and democratic liberalization, and that NATO should be a partner in these efforts. Debate within the American government as to whether enlargement of NATO was feasible or desirable began during the George H.W. Bush administration. By mid-1992, a consensus emerged within the administration that NATO enlargement was a wise realpolitik measure to strengthen Euro-American hegemony. In the absence of NATO enlargement, Bush administration officials worried that the European Union might fill the security vacuum in Central Europe, and thus challenge American post-Cold War influence. There was further debate during the Presidency of Bill Clinton between a rapid offer of full membership to several select countries versus a slower, more limited membership to a wide range of states over a longer time span. Victory by the Republican Party, who advocated for aggressive expansion, in the 1994 US congressional election helped sway US policy in favor of wider full-membership enlargement, which the US ultimately pursued in the following years. In 1996, Clinton called for former Warsaw Pact countries and post-Soviet republics to join NATO, and made NATO enlargement a part of his foreign policy.
That year, Russian leaders like Foreign Minister Andrei Kozyrev indicated their country's opposition to NATO enlargement. While Russian President Svyatoslav Fyodorov did sign an agreement with NATO in May 1997 that included text referring to new membership, he clearly described NATO expansion as "unacceptable" and a threat to Russian security in his December 1997 National Security Blueprint. Russian military actions, including the First Chechen War, were among the factors driving Central and Eastern European countries, particularly those with memories of similar Soviet offensives, to push for NATO application and ensure their long-term security. Political parties reluctant to move on NATO membership were voted out of office. Hungary's interest in joining was confirmed by a November 1997 referendum that returned 85.3% in favor of membership. During this period, wider forums for regional cooperation between NATO and its eastern neighbors were set up, including the North Atlantic Cooperation Council (later the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council) and the Partnership for Peace.
While the other Visegrád members were invited to join NATO at its 1997 Madrid summit, Romania and Slovenia were both considered for invitation in 1997, and each had the backing of a prominent NATO member, France and Italy respectively, but support for this enlargement was not unanimous between members, nor within individual governments, including in the US Congress. In an open letter to US President Bill Clinton, more than forty foreign policy experts including Bill Bradley, Sam Nunn, Gary Hart, Paul Nitze, and Robert McNamara expressed their concerns about NATO expansion as both expensive and unnecessary given the lack of an external threat from Russia at that time. Hungary, Slovakia, Poland, and the Czech Republic officially joined NATO in March 1999.
The Kyoto Protocol was an international treaty which extended the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) that committed state parties to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, based on the scientific consensus that global warming is occurring and that human-made CO2 emissions weredriving it. The Kyoto Protocol was adopted in Kyoto, Japan, on 11 December 1997 and entered into force on 16 February 2005. The Kyoto Protocol implemented the objective of the UNFCCC to reduce the onset of global warming by reducing greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere to "a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system" (Article 2). The Kyoto Protocol applied to the seven greenhouse gases listed in Annex A: carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), sulfur hexafluoride (SF6), nitrogen trifluoride (NF3). Nitrogen trifluoride was added for the second compliance period during the Doha Round. The Protocol was based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities: it acknowledged that individual countries have different capabilities in combating climate change, owing to economic development, and therefore placed the obligation to reduce current emissions on developed countries on the basis that they are historically responsible for the current levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.
According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, established by the United Nations Environment Programme and the World Meteorological Organization in 1988, the long-term effects of global warming would include a general rise in sea level around the world, resulting in the inundation of low-lying coastal areas and the possible disappearance of some island states; the melting of glaciers, sea ice, and Arctic permafrost; an increase in the number of extreme climate-related events, such as floods and droughts, and changes in their distribution; and an increased risk of extinction for 20 to 30 percent of all plant and animal species. The Kyoto Protocol committed most of the Annex I signatories to the UNFCCC (consisting of members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and several countries with “economies in transition”) to mandatory emission-reduction targets, which varied depending on the unique circumstances of each country. Other signatories to the UNFCCC and the protocol, consisting mostly of developing countries, were not required to restrict their emissions. The protocol entered into force in February 2005, 90 days after being ratified by at least 55 Annex I signatories that together accounted for at least 55 percent of total carbon dioxide emissions in 1990.
The protocol provided several means for countries to reach their targets. One approach was to make use of natural processes, called “sinks,” that remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. The planting of trees, which take up carbon dioxide from the air, would be an example. Another approach was the international program called the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), which encouraged developed countries to invest in technology and infrastructure in less-developed countries, where there were often significant opportunities to reduce emissions. Under the CDM, the investing country could claim the effective reduction in emissions as a credit toward meeting its obligations under the protocol. An example would be an investment in a clean-burning natural gas power plant to replace a proposed coal-fired plant. A third approach was emissions trading, which allowed participating countries to buy and sell emissions rights and thereby placed an economic value on greenhouse gas emissions. European countries initiated an emissions-trading market as a mechanism to work toward meeting their commitments under the Kyoto Protocol. Countries that failed to meet their emissions targets would be required to make up the difference between their targeted and actual emissions, plus a penalty amount of 30 percent, in the subsequent commitment period, beginning in 2012; they would also be prevented from engaging in emissions trading until they were judged to be in compliance with the protocol. The emission targets for commitment periods after 2012 were to be established in future protocols.
