At the United Nations on September 23, Russian President Medvedev was asked about Iran developing the capacity to build nuclear weapons. ”In some cases” he said,” sanctions are inevitable.” But in Moscow, standing beside visiting Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said sanctions would be “counterproductive.” 

Iran's nuclear ambition heads the top of Secretary Clinton's agenda while in Russia. Also on her agenda is renewing the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, which expires in December, a major goal of President Obama.

Ambassador James Collins spoke with host Warren Olney and guests Andrei Piontkovsky of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Binoy Kampark of RMIT University and James Kitfield, National Security Correspondent at the National Journal about U.S.-Russian relations and the domestic realities that could impede progress in reaching an international consensus.