(The following joint statement was released September 23, 1997 by theWhite House Office of the Vice President following the ninth meetingof the U.S.-Russian Joint Commission on Economic and TechnicalCooperation, also known as the Gore-Chernomyrdin Commission.)

The work of the U.S.-Russian Commission on Economic and TechnologicalCooperation, established in 1993 by Presidents Clinton and Yeltsin atthe Vancouver Summit for the purpose of promoting economic, scientific,and technological cooperation between the United States of America and theRussian Federation as a contribution to the well-being and security of thepeoples of both countries, has focused on concrete issues and projects,ranging from tariffs and taxes to environmental protection and theconstruction of an International Space Station.

Each new problem solved and each new successful venture testifies to thepossibility of advancing fundamentally new relations between Russia andthe United States that are responsive to the aspirations of our peoples.

The Helsinki meeting between Presidents Clinton and Yeltsin was a majorstep forward in the creation of an architecture for future U.S.-Russianrelations. An important outcome of the Helsinki meeting was the JointStatement on the U.S.-Russian Economic Initiative. Both in spirit and inspecific language, the Helsinki statement defined, as one of our mostimportant shared goals, the completion of Russia's integration into thesystem of international economic and financial institutions. The emergenceof a single global economic system, in which the Russian Federation willhave assumed its proper place, will signify that the United States,Russia, and the international community have transcended the legacy of theCold War, and will contribute greatly to the prosperity not only of theUnited States and Russia, but of all countries.

The Helsinki Joint Statement on the U.S.-Russia Economic Initiative provided a point of departure for the activities of the IXth session ofthe U.S.-Russian Commission on Economic and Technological Cooperation. TheCommission analyzed the progress that has been made toward realizing thespecific objectives established at Helsinki and surveyed the issues on itsbroad agenda. The Commission's co-chairs noted Russia's activeparticipation in the Summit of the Eight in Denver, and the agreementreached on Russia's acceptance into the Paris Club, and urged that furtherprogress be made toward Russia's accession to the World Trade Organization. Both sides will continue to strive toward fullimplementation of the objectives set forth at Helsinki.

The Vice President and the Chairman of the Government will continue workto remove the remaining obstacles to bilateral economic and commercialcooperation and to expand market access. In the context of Russia'stransition to a market economy, the U.S. Government will continue to applyits trade laws in a fair and nondiscriminatory manner.

The Vice President and the Chairman of the Government affirmed theircommitment to creating the conditions in both their countries for theUnited States to extend most-favored-nation trade status to Russia ona permanent and unconditional basis.

Both sides are also resolved to cooperate closely to create a regulatorybasis for trade in dual-use goods and technologies and thereby to expandthe possibilities for trade in these high-technology products.

The sides further expressed their resolve to ensure that bilateraltrade and investment activities, particularly in the natural resourcessector, are consistent with generally recognized principles ofsustainable development, as current economic development must not beachieved at the expense of the quality of life for future generations.

For its part, the Russian Federation recognizes the need to accelerate andintensify the process of domestic reform so as to establish the necessarylegal and regulatory conditions to develop rapidly its market economy inorder to assume the obligations of WTO membership. In the coming months,the Russian government will give special attention to tax and legalreforms, development of capital and real estate markets, structural andsocial sector reforms, the fight against crime and corruption, reformingthe Russian health care system, and the adoption of key pieces ofinvestment legislation, including creation of a legal framework to supportthe implementation of projects based on production sharing arrangements todevelop Russia's mineral and energy resources including projects involvingforeign investors.

The U.S. side has affirmed its intention to implement fully measuresto support U.S. investments in Russia as embodied in the HelsinkiJoint Statement on the U.S.-Russia Economic Initiative.

Ratification by Russia and bringing into force of the Treaty on theEncouragement and Mutual Protection of Investment will be a specialpriority, as will the adoption by Russia of international accountingstandards. Further development of small business cooperation willcontinue to be a common goal of the highest priority aimed atdeveloping the necessary elements of a market economy.

Progress in these areas will create the basis for sustained growth ofthe Russian economy and encourage investment by both domestic andforeign investors. The Vice President and the Chairman of theGovernment further agreed that this progress would be complemented bythe efforts of the Business Development Committee to producerecommendations in critical areas such as commercial tax regulationand administration as well as oil and gas pipeline regulation.

The co-chairs also stressed the importance of removing obstacles to tradeand investment and improving the mechanisms for business dispute resolution, including the enforcement of court judgments in commercialcases.

The Commission co-chairs called for further focus on work to combatcrimes against business and to promote further cooperation in the areaof standards and product certification.

Both sides are undertaking measures to realize the regional investmentinitiative announced by the Vice President and the Chairman of the Government at the VIIIth session of the Commission in February, 1997.Pilot projects under this initiative have been announced in the Novgorodregions in northwestern Russia and the Russian Far East. Both sidespropose to expand such cooperation to an additional two regions in Russia.

Working with the private sectors of both countries and the relevantforeign assistance and export credit agencies, the Regional InvestmentInitiative will seek to identify new opportunities for trade andinvestment in Russia's regions, particularly within the small businesssector. The U.S. side has requested additional funding from Congressto expand this initiative to other regions.

Russia's growing system of capital markets will play a critical partin encouraging Russia's economic growth, and the Vice President andthe Chairman of the Government therefore agreed to continuecollaboration through the U.S.-Russia Capital Markets Forum. The Forumaims to identify priority reforms needed to strengthen Russian capitalmarkets and to offer recommendations for effecting those reforms. TheForum is in the process of developing specific recommendations in theareas of capital market regulation, oversight, and enforcement;corporate governance; accounting and auditing; capital marketinfrastructure; collective investment vehicles; and taxation. TheForum will over time identify additional measures that will aid Russiain building a capital markets system to mobilize the public's savingsand promote the efficient allocation of investment funds.

Aerospace will continue to be an important area of cooperation underthe Commission, contributing to the technological and economicpotential of industry on both sides. Next year, the United States andRussia, in cooperation with other international partners, will beginassembling and operating the International Space Station. The UnitedStates and Russia will also continue expanding cooperation andenhancing coordination in civilian space activities. The United Statesand Russia will make efforts to expand further cooperation in spaceand earth sciences, including Mars exploration by means of robotics,and terrestrial and space research. The United States and Russia willcontinue to support commercial joint ventures in the fields ofrocket-engine construction and space launches. In particular, stepswill be taken to bring existing regulatory standards on the use ofRussian launch vehicles on the world commercial space launch servicesmarket into line with the market principles of fair competition.

Direct cooperation in industry-to-industry aircraft construction willalso be expanded. Cooperation in fields such as aerodynamics,construction materials, and joint space-based research on globalenvironmental processes will continue.

In the field of non-nuclear energy, the Vice President and theChairman of the Government agreed to focus their efforts on promotingmutual interests in a clear and consistent investment regime inRussia's energy sector, removing impediments to commercial financingfor energy efficiency and renewable energy projects and supportingRussia's efforts to create a competitive electric power market. All ofthese efforts require the development of strong legal and regulatoryframeworks, as well as innovative approaches to deepen cooperation onthe research, development, and market deployment of energytechnologies. Development in these areas will be based on the progressthat has been made through years of joint work on energy efficiencyand energy conservation. The Vice President and the Chairman of theGovernment also noted the importance of the ministerial meeting of theEight on energy issues, which will be held in Russia in 1998.

In relation to nuclear energy, materials, and technologies, the Vice President and the Chairman of the Government agreed on the need to expandcollaboration in areas such as nuclear safety and nuclear materialsecurity, including the creation of a system of materials control,physical protection and accounting, first and foremost for materialsreleased as a result of the dismantlement of nuclear weapons.

The sides also intend to pursue vigorously other areas of mutualinterest, including disposition and management of excessweapons-usable materials, promoting the conversion of the Russiannuclear complex, and fulfilling the nuclear security commitments madeby our Presidents at their meeting in Helsinki this year.

The two sides agreed to work together to resolve outstanding issuesand achieve full U.S.-Russian cooperation in the peaceful uses ofatomic energy, and implementation of the intergovernmental agreementon the uses of highly enriched uranium from nuclear weapons.

The United States and Russia consider it important to promote nuclearenergy safety through their bilateral cooperation, support the processof converting military nuclear technologies, and remove obstacles tocooperation in high technologies and manufacturing based on them.

The sides note the importance of further developing intergovernmentalcooperation, alongside laboratory-to-laboratory cooperation, toimprove efficiency in utilizing the potential of the U.S. NationalLaboratories and the Russian Federal Nuclear Centers, and they notethe importance of supporting the most promising development projectsof U.S. and Russian specialists in atomic energy.

The sides note the need for a multifaceted approach in examining theissue of U.S.-Russian nuclear collaboration and the need to establishtransparency arrangements for the Mayak storage facility. They alsonote the need to consider seriously joint technical and organizationalmeasures to ensure irreversibility in the process of nuclear weaponsreduction and the need to find and embrace mutually agreed solutionsto commercial and investment issues. The two sides agreed to considercreating a Nuclear Energy Committee under the Commission as anobjective and appropriate reflection of the present status and futureprospects of U.S.-Russian cooperation.

Cooperation in the field of environmental protection is taking on ever-increasing importance. The Vice President and the Chairman of theGovernment therefore decided to intensify cooperation on practicalsteps to implement the concepts of sustainable development, responsiblestewardship of natural resources, and restoration of the environment.Non-governmental organizations of both countries will play an increasinglyactive role in these joint efforts, as will the private sector.

Major efforts should focus on protecting the global environmentthrough expanded cooperation on global climate change and theprotection of the ozone layer, as well as the development andimplementation of market-oriented mechanisms to achieve positiveenvironmental outcomes. In this context, the sides should work tofacilitate sound environmental protection practices in industry and toimprove financing for environmental investments.

The Vice President and the Chairman of the Government requested allmembers of the Commission to do everything possible to ensure thattheir work under the Commission makes the largest possiblecontribution to these efforts.

The sides are pleased with the initial steps that have been taken todevelop cooperation in environmental uses and applications of datafrom national security systems under the Special EnvironmentalInitiative. The Vice President and the Chairman of the Governmentrequest the Environmental Working Group to continue its activitiesaimed at improving interaction, including the use of information fromcivilian and national security data systems, for the monitoring andassessment of environmental disasters.

In the health sector, the Vice President and the Chairman of theGovernment noted the particularly significant opportunities to improvequality of life for people as a result of the Commission's work. Theyagreed to concentrate efforts on early detection of infectiousdiseases and their prevention and control, which may be accomplished,among other things, through participation in international programs todiscover and treat new and re-emerging infectious diseases.

The sides will strive to ensure the health of the population,especially the health of young people, by popularizing a healthylifestyle, improving understanding of the impact of the environment onhealth, and expanding medical knowledge.

The sides will continue to engage in dialogue about health reforms andrestructuring and to implement selected joint programs aimed atsolving the problems of the Russian health care system with a viewtoward reforming it.

Noting the changes that are taking place in the Russian agriculturalsector, as well as in Russia's agricultural potential, the VicePresident and the Chairman of the Government urgently requested theAgribusiness Committee to continue to direct its efforts towardaccelerating Russian agricultural reform, leading to new opportunitiesfor trade, investment, and other mutually beneficial activities suchas expanding research contacts between U.S. and Russian organizations.

Both sides agreed on the importance of further efforts to promoteprivate land ownership and its key role in a vibrant and market-basedagricultural sector.

Major emphasis will be placed on developing a real estate market andon expanding investment in joint ventures as the key means both ofdeveloping business ties and for technology transfer, with specialattention to regional development in cooperation with regional-leveladministrations, the Russian private sector and banks, and on theimplementation of local and national-level reform initiatives topromote and assist such investments.

In the area of science and technology, the advancement of knowledgeand promotion of economic development remain the guiding objectives.The sides pledged to continue their support for basic researchprojects and to encourage non-governmental organizations to continuetheir support of the basic sciences. The sides intend to give specialattention to developing cooperation in the area of telecommunicationsand advanced computing.

The sides will concentrate also on activities aimed at applying theachievements of the basic sciences and advanced technology tocommercial uses. In collaboration with the Business DevelopmentCommittee, the Science and Technology Committee will focus onimproving conditions for the commercialization of technologicaldevelopments by the private sector.

Given the continuing need for Russia to convert its excess defense industry to civilian production, and considering the commercial potentialwhich may be identified in scientific and high technology sectors thatpreviously supported the Russian defense industry establishment,facilitating private investment by the U.S. and Russia in defenseconversion projects remains a high priority for the work of theCommission.

The sides agree that increased cooperation in the area of defense, dual-use, and other technologies is of great importance and have reaffirmed their intent to conclude in the nearest future an agreementthat will govern the conduct of this expanded technological cooperation.The sides recognize that such an agreement is necessary to provide formore effective cooperation in the defense and dual-use technology arena.

The Defense Conversion Committee will continue to focus uponinitiatives that foster community-based economic restructuring inRussian cities that were former centers of defense production. Inparticular, efforts to foster growth in the number of small-to-mediumsize businesses in these regions should be afforded special emphasis.

The Cooperative Threat Reduction (CTR) programs of militarycooperation will be continued, including those connected with the safedismantling and destruction of nuclear weapons, and the elimination ofdecommissioned Russian nuclear submarines. CTR programs will alsofocus on reducing the quantity, and ensuring proper protection andstorage, of nuclear materials.

The sides recognize the importance of joint cooperation under aprogram to promote the destruction of Russian chemical weapons. TheUnited States will seek appropriation of necessary funds to build afacility for the destruction of chemical weapons in Russia aspreviously agreed. Efforts to convert and demilitarize former chemicalweapons production facilities in accordance with the Chemical WeaponsConvention signed in 1993 will be closely connected to specificcommercial projects at these facilities.

The Vice President and the Chairman of the Government highlighted theimportance of giving more attention to coordinating the work of theCommission with the U.S. and Russian business communities, as well aswith non-governmental organizations.

In addition to the Commission's traditional meetings in alternatingcapitals, the Commission co-chairs will strive to visit major economiccenters of the United States and Russia and to meet with regionalleaders in order to bring about maximum involvement of non-governmentaland business communities of both countries in carrying out U.S.-Russianeconomic and technological cooperation and to stimulate privateinvestment.

The Commission will also seek closer dialogue with the legislative bodiesof both countries. In particular, the Vice President and the Chairman ofthe Government support the creation of the Congress-Duma Study Group,which will work independently of the Commission but which is expected tomake its own important contribution to stronger ties between the UnitedStates and Russia in the areas of economics and technology.

Implementation of the agenda set forth in this statement will promotecloser economic and technological partnership between the UnitedStates and the Russian Federation to the benefit of both countries,and will assist Russia's further integration into internationalsecurity and economic systems.