60167 It is considered inescapable that the new Congress led by the Republican Party, starting on January 4th, will assert a tough line against Russia and place strong pressure on the Clinton administration.
60168 President Clinton is expected to compromise with the Republic Party in diplomacy, in addition to his preceding policy shift in its favor following the defeat in the midterm election, with further confrontation between the U.S. and Russia being projected.
60169 The most important issue on the agenda regarding U.S.-Russia relations is the expansion of NATO, which has been focused since last autumn, and about which conservatives and liberals argued bitterly at the end of last year in U.S. newspapers.
60170 It has been revealed that leading Republicans plan to demand tough measures be taken against Russia by the Clinton administration.
60171 The Washington Post carried an essay by former Secretary of State, Henry Kissinger, insisting, "The expansion of NATO is an urgent task."
60172 The former Secretary of State commented in the essay, "Unless NATO expands to embrace the four East European countries including Poland and Hungary, a vacant area will be formed between Germany and Russia, which will lead to severer confrontation between the two, due to each country's moves to occupy this area for security reasons."
60173 He then appealed for immediate admission of the four nations to NATO, along with concluding a treaty with Russia, clarifying that foreign armies will not be stationed in the four new NATO members to make Russia feel at ease.
60174 Responding to this opinion, Dr. Brown, a senior researcher at Harvard University, pointed out the possibility of causing Russia's repulsion by the expansive policy of NATO, thus risking the country's withdrawal from the Conventional Forces in Europe.
60175 Dr. Brown also warned, "Another curtain will be drawn, between the East European countries that join NATO and those that do not," and opposed Mr. Kissinger'opinion saying, "NATO expansion is not reasonable in terms of strategy and politics, and we only have to warn Russia that in case it assumes an invasive attitude toward any of its neighbors, we will expand."
60176 In its campaign platform set out by the new Chairman of the House of Representatives, Newt Gingrich, and titled, "Contract with America," the Republican Party promised to "promote the entry into NATO of countries with the will to turn to democracy and a market economy, as well as placing their military forces under civilian control," thus demonstrating their plan to encourage Eastern European nations to join NATO.
60177 The Republican Party has also recently started to push harder line policies, insisting, "It is unacceptable that Russia has a veto over the future of NATO or the U.S. role in Europe," and, "The United States shall act as the winner of the Cold War."
60178 Although the Clinton administration hopes to deal with the Republicans based on support from liberals who are against the expansion of NATO, it is viewed as certain that the President will be forced to substantially modify his original line to embrace Russia's Yeltsin administration.
60179 A small village located in Phayao Province, northern Thailand.
60180 The mountain-dwelling Mon people of this small village commanding a view of the mountains of the Laotian border spend their first day of January 1995, in drinking celebrations.
60181 The Mon people base their calendar on lunar cycles, which provides them with a different New Year's date every year.