Interview on CNN With Jill Dougherty

QUESTION: Secretary Powell, on the issue of the bases, there are a number of people in Russia who have the feeling that if they pull out of those bases it’s going to create an open hole into which the United States will jump or maybe NATO with bases of its own. Do they have a right to fear that? How can you allay those fears?

SECRETARY POWELL: Well, I hope to allay those fears when I’m in Moscow tomorrow and I have a chance to speak to President Putin and Foreign Minister Ivanov. We believe that they should stand by their Istanbul commitments to evacuate those bases in a timely manner. And they’ve already missed the time in which they were supposed to do it.

But there should be no concern that the United States is looking for huge permanent bases in Georgia. We have had a train and equip program here, that program will end and our troops will be leaving, the few troops who are doing it and from that point on we’ll have normal relations with Georgia through our embassy and through our military attaches, but there is no intention on the part of the United States to put into Georgia major bases substituting for the bases that the Russians would be leaving.

QUESTION: And you said no permanent or major bases…

SECRETARY POWELL: Yeah, but no bases – we’re not looking for bases. Now, that doesn’t mean that we won’t have good military to military relations with Georgia but we have no need for a significant presence, or a presence really of any kind.

We came here with our train and equip teams – to do what? – To help the Georgians train several battalions that would help them deal with the Pankisi Gorge – Why? – Because there were terrorists in the Pankisi Gorge that were attacking -who? - Russians, through Chechnya. So to an extent we were trying to assist the Russians with a problem there had in Georgia and that’s what our military were here for. And these are not large numbers, so I think this is a misplaced concern.

QUESTION: Another concern, and you certainly heard it today, this morning, with all of the people in that meeting, lots of questions about the so-called breakaway regions of Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and the fear is using, exploiting, a young inexperienced president that maybe they would make a break for independence. Since the U.S. does have a some, a small, military contingent training, what would the U.S. do if they really did push for independence?

SECRETARY POWELL: well our small military presence here has a specific purpose and they will complete that purpose in two months’ time and they’ll be leaving. But this really isn’t a major concern for us.

The new president may be young but inexperienced he is not. He’s demonstrated that in the recent campaign and he’s spent part of today already out in those regions. And he has had conversations with President Putin and other Russian leaders. and I hope that we’ll be able to move forward and find peaceful solutions to the questions relating to these disputed areas.

QUESTION: And just one last question about Russia since you’ll be there tomorrow. There’s a lot of concern among some people in the United States especially, that President Putin is moving in a totalitarian direction, and they would point to the recent parliamentary elections, many questions about those, crackdowns on the media, or at least restriction of the media etc. Do you share those concerns?

SECRETARY POWELL: No, the word “totalitarian” I don’t think applies here. I think we see in President Putin a president who is very popular in his country, has restored a certain sense of order that had gone away during the years of Yeltsin. Some actions have been taken by the Russians with respect to the media and there are other issues with respect to their managed democracy that I look forward to discussing with Foreign Minister Ivanov and President Putin tomorrow.

And so we have good relations with Russia. We’ve cooperated in so many areas. We have a NATO-Russia Council that is very effective. We have strategic discussions with the Russians on a variety of issues. President Putin and President Bush enjoy a good, strong relationship. And so there are so many things going well in the U.S.- Russian relationship and in those areas where questions happen been raised, we’ll have discussions and we’ll exchange views on them.

QUESTION: Is “managed democracy”, democracy?

SECRETARY POWELL: Managed democracy can be a democracy. We want to make sure it moves in the right direction. We want to make sure we have a common understanding of what the Russians are doing, but this is the kind of useful, open dialogue that we have had with the Russians since the beginning of this administration and President Putin and President Bush speak to each other candidly as I do with my colleague, as Don Rumsfeld and Condi Rice, as they do with their colleague, Sergei Ivanov, who I’ll also be seeing in Moscow.

QUESTION: Well thank you very much Mr. Secretary, we do appreciate it.

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