Joint Statement Between the United States of America and the Russian Federation

President George W. Bush and President Vladimir V. Putin held productive discussions at Camp David, Maryland, on September 26 and 27, 2003. Building on the Joint Declaration on the New Strategic Relationship of May 24, 2002, and other joint documents, they focused on practical ways to broaden and deepen cooperation and partnership between the United States and Russia, overcoming obstacles and fulfilling their shared vision of a new strategic relationship to deal with the challenges and opportunities of the 21st Century.

The Presidents discussed a broad range of bilateral and international issues, including counter-terrorism; preventing proliferation of weapons of mass destruction; the situations in the Middle East, Iraq, Iran, and North Korea; strengthening the NATO-Russia relationship; progress in creating conditions to expand economic and commercial relations; cooperation in high technology, housing, and health; and people-to-people contacts, as well as other questions of mutual interest.

The Presidents agreed on next steps in a number of areas to strengthen the existing U.S.-Russia partnership. They issued specific instructions to their respective governments identifying tasks to be undertaken by the appropriate agencies and specifying timelines for doing so, and they underscored their shared intention to monitor fulfillment of these tasks. In particular, they identified key areas where progress might be made in the near term, including, among other issues:

• implementing effectively the Strategic Offensive Reductions Treaty (Treaty of Moscow), and continuing efforts to increase transparency and build confidence on strategic issues;
  
  
• building cooperation between the American and Russian military establishments, as critical to joint efforts in areas such as counter-terrorism, missile defense, and peacekeeping;
  
  
• strengthening commercial and economic relations through further cooperation in enhancing global energy security, eliminating barriers to trade and investment, promoting high-technology cooperation, and protecting intellectual property rights;
  
  
• strengthening consultation and cooperation in dealing with regional problems; and
  
  
• deepening cooperation in the battle against HIV/AIDs, which will benefit the United States and Russia, and contribute to the global effort against this modern plague.

The Presidents agreed to remain in close contact to ensure progress across the broad agenda that they have defined.