U.S. helps Russian NGOs for human rights' sake only - Ambassador Tefft
MOSCOW. May 7 (Interfax) - There is no political motivation in the cooperation between the United States and Russian nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), U.S. Ambassador to Russia John Tefft has said.
There is nothing unusual or politically motivated about it, he said during a questions and answers session with Facebook users, when asked why the U.S. finances Russian NGOs.
Since 1975 when the Helsinki Final Act was signed, which launched the OSCE (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe), the U.S., Russia and our European partners have remained committed to the respect for human rights as a key component of our relationships and mutual dialogue, he said.
It is this and our other international commitments that the U.S. human-rights policy and cooperation with NGOs in Russia and any other country are based upon, he said.
The ambassador's replies are available on the U.S. Embassy's Facebook page.