#6 - JRL 7139
SERGEI KARAGANOV: CHANGES IN RUSSIAN-U.S. RELATIONS CAUSED BY IRAQ WAR SHOULD 
NOT BE DRAMATISED 

MOSCOW, April 9th, 2003. /From a RIA Novosti correspondent/--Changes in 
Russian-U.S. relations caused by the Iraq war should not be dramatised, head 
of the Council for Foreign and Defence Policy under the Russian president's 
auspices reported. 

Moscow and Washington are "still in close contact at many levels" including 
the top one, Mr. Karaganov stressed at a Wednesday press conference in 
Moscow. That means that though the countries have a number of differences in 
one field they co-operate in others. "In this dangerous world an alliance 
between at least several states is necessary," he said. According to Sergei 
Karaganov, relations between the USA and Russia "will survive the Iraq war." 
Russian President Vladimir Putin's unofficial aide stressed that he in no 
case justified the U.S. military operations in Iraq. Mr. Karaganov described 
it as "ineffective." He also believes that they contradict international law. 
According to the Russian political analyst, "the further course of events 
will depend upon Iraqis' determination and losses of both sides."