Obama–Medvedev Commission

President Medvedev and President Obama in Moscow, July 6, 2009 (Photo: White House)

The Obama–Medvedev Commission, officially known as the U.S.–Russia Bilateral Presidential Commission, was announced on July 6, 2009 by President of the United States Barack Obama and President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Medvedev during President Obama's visit to Moscow, as a way to improve communication and cooperation between the governments of Russia and the United States. The two Presidents announced that the work of the Commission would be coordinated by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.^[1]

Since 2014, the rapid deterioration of relations between Russia and the United States has seen the activities of the commission been largely curtailed and is essentially defunct.^{[citation needed]}

Purpose of the Commission

According to the Mission Statement of the Commission, agreed between the two sides in October 2009, the purpose of the Commission is "identifying areas of cooperation and pursuing joint projects and actions that strengthen strategic stability, international security, economic well-being, and the development of ties between the Russian and American people....the foundation for the work of the commission is based on the core principles of friendship, cooperation, openness, and predictability, and we are resolved to address disagreements openly and honestly in a spirit of mutual respect and acknowledgement of each other's perspective.".^[2]

Composition of the Commission

Presidents Obama and Medvedev agreed that the Commission would have thirteen working groups. In October 2009, during the visit to Moscow of Secretary of State Clinton, three additional working groups were added; on Counterterrorism, Environment, and Military to Military. In addition, Sports was added as a sub-group of the Working Group on Education and Cultural Exchanges, and a Policy Steering Group was created, headed by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov and U.S. Undersecretary of State William J. Burns. The working groups were:

Policy Steering Group: chaired by Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov and Undersecretary of State William J. Burns.
Nuclear Energy and Nuclear Security: chaired by Sergei Kiriyenko, head of Rosatom, and Daniel Poneman, Deputy Secretary of Energy.
Arms Control and International Security: chaired by Sergei Ryabkov, Russian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Ellen Tauscher, Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs.
Drug Trafficking: chaired by Viktor Ivanov, Director, Russian Federal Drug Enforcement Service, and Gil Kerlikowske, Director, Office of National Drug Control Policy.
Business Development and Economic Relations: chaired by Elvira Nabiullina, Minister of Economic Development, and Gary Locke, United States Secretary of Commerce.
Energy and Environment: chaired by Sergei Shmatko, Minister of Energy, and Steven Chu, United States Secretary of Energy.
Agriculture: chaired by Yelena Skrynnik, Minister of Agriculture, and Tom Vilsack, United States Secretary of Agriculture.
Science and Technologies: chaired by Andrei Fursenko, Minister of Education and Science, and John Holdren, Director, Office of Science and Technology Policy.
Space Cooperation: chaired by Anatoliy Perminov, head of the Russian Federal Space Agency, and the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
Health:^[3] chaired by Tatyana Golikova, Minister of Health, and Kathleen Sebelius, United States Secretary of Health and Human Services.
Cooperation in Prevention and Handling of Emergency Situations: chaired by Sergey Shoygu, Minister of Emergency Situations, and Craig Fugate, Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency
Civil Society: chaired by Vladislav Surkov, First Deputy Chief of Staff, Presidential Administration, and Michael McFaul, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Russia, National Security Council.
Educational and Cultural Exchanges: chaired by Mikhail Shvydkoy, Special Presidential Representative for International Cultural Cooperation, and Judith McHale, Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs.
Counterterrorism
Environment
Military to Military: chaired by Army General Nikolay Makarov, Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces and Admiral Michael Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Intelligence: chaired by Mikhail Fradkov, Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service and David Petraeus, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency.
Defence Relations: chaired by Anatoly Serdyukov, Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation and Leon Panetta, Secretary of Defense of the United States.
Innovations
Rule of Law^[4]

References

^ White House Press Statement, July 6, 2009
^ U.S. Embassy Moscow Press Office, October 2009
^ Rojansky, Matther; Izabella Tabarovsky (8 June 2013). "The Latent Power of Health Cooperation in U.S.-Russian Relations". Science & Diplomacy. 2 (2). Archived from the original on 21 August 2020. Retrieved 8 May 2013.
^ U.S. Embassy Moscow Press Office, October, 2009

[1] White House Press Statement, July 6, 2009

[2] U.S. Embassy Moscow Press Office, October 2009

[3] Rojansky, Matther; Izabella Tabarovsky (8 June 2013). "The Latent Power of Health Cooperation in U.S.-Russian Relations". Science & Diplomacy. 2 (2). Archived from the original on 21 August 2020. Retrieved 8 May 2013.

[4] U.S. Embassy Moscow Press Office, October, 2009

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

v t e Russia–United States relations
Diplomatic posts	Embassy of Russia, Washington, D.C. Ambassadors of Russia to the United States Russian ambassador's residence Embassy of the United States, Moscow Ambassadors of the United States to Russia Spaso House Consulate-General of Russia, Houston Consulate-General of Russia, New York City John Henry Hammond House Consulate-General of Russia, San Francisco Elmcroft Estate Lothrop Mansion Pioneer Point Permanent Mission of Russia to the United Nations Killenworth Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs
Diplomacy	Operation Provide Hope 1998 Moscow Summit 2001 Slovenia Summit 2005 Slovakia Summit 5+2 format Russian reset Obama–Medvedev Commission Syrian civil war U.S.–Russia peace proposals Destruction of Syria's chemical weapons 2017 St. Petersburg raid 2018 Helsinki summit 2021 Geneva summit Arctic Council Arctic Ocean Conference Ilulissat Declaration Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism Gore-Chernomyrdin Commission The U.S. Russia Investment Fund U.S.–Russia Joint Commission on POW/MIAs Moscow–Washington hotline Shuttle–Mir program Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action Exercise RIMPAC International Space Station
Incidents	Kildin Island submarine incident Kola Peninsula submarine incident Norwegian rocket incident Strait of Juan de Fuca laser incident Itar-Tass Russian News Agency v. Russian Kurier, Inc. Kidnapping of Mormon missionaries Pristina airport incident Russian Guantanamo Bay detainees RM Broadcasting Illegals Program Stephen Holmes European Deterrence Initiative Operation Atlantic Resolve Russian interference in United States elections 2016 Links between Trump associates and Russian officials Steele dossier Maria Butina 2018 2020 Donald Trump's disclosures of classified information Havana syndrome Zersetzung Battle of Khasham Poisoning of Sergei and Yulia Skripal Arrest of Trevor Reed Russian bounty program Viktor Bout–Brittney Griner prisoner exchange Black Sea drone incident Russian spies in the Russo-Ukrainian War 2022–2023 Pentagon document leaks Lady R incident
Legislation	Jackson–Vanik amendment Russian foreign agent law Magnitsky Act Dima Yakovlev Law Guantanamo List Ukraine Freedom Support Act of 2014 Russian undesirable organizations law Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act Defending Elections from Threats by Establishing Redlines Act Defending American Security from Kremlin Aggression Act Russian–Venezuelan Threat Mitigation Act Task Force KleptoCapture Executive Order 14071
Treaties	START II START III Mutual detargeting Megatons to Megawatts Program Strategic Offensive Reductions Treaty New START
Related	Russian Empire–United States relations Soviet Union–United States relations NATO–Russia relations Anti-American sentiment in Russia Bush legs Center on Global Interests Congress of Russian Americans Anglo-American School of Moscow United States military and prostitution in South Korea Russian Mission School in New York Russian Embassy School in Washington, D.C. Russian Cultural Center International Launch Services U.S. Russia Foundation U.S.–Russia Business Council Stanford US–Russia Forum Space Flight Europe-America 500 Russia–Syria–Iran–Iraq coalition Territorial claims in the Arctic United States and the Russian invasion of Ukraine New Great Game Second Cold War Not One Inch
Category