Nikolay Babich, Consul General of the Russian Federation in Houston

Nikolay Evgenevich Babich serves as the Consul General of the Russian Federation in Houston, Texas. In 1971 he graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations. He holds the diplomatic rank of Plenipotentiary Envoy 2nd class. He is fluent in English and Spanish. Mr. Babich has served at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs since 1971. His assignments included Colombia (1972-1975), Peru (1978-1980), and Cuba (1985-1991). From 2005 to 2008, he was the Deputy Director of the Department of Foreign Policy Planning with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia. On June 8, 2008, Mr. Babich came to the U.S. as the Consul General of the Russian Federation in Houston.

– Nikolay Evgenevich, the first question is a traditional one. Please tell us about yourself. How did you become a diplomat?

– At school I have felt an interest for foreign languages, history, and literature. I was planning to enter Moscow State University, the Department of Oriental Studies. I even attended the preparatory courses. But entrance examinations at the Moscow State University were in August, while entrance exams at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations took place in July. In July 1966, I decided to try myself and take the exams at that school. It turned out successfully – I garnered 24 points out of 25 possible. There were five examinations, then an interview. Thus I began my studies of foreign relations and, in 1971, I graduated. Since that time, I have been engaged in diplomatic service.

– In your opinion, has the prestige of the diplomatic profession returned in modern Russia?

– The prestige of the diplomatic profession in Russia has been restored. I can judge it from the number of graduates of Russian educational establishments who wish to go to work in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Ministry now offers employment not only to the graduates of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, the Moscow State University, or the St. Petersburg State University, but also to students from other schools. There are good schools in other regions of Russia, whose alumni are great professionals. I think that the prestige of public service in general has now increased in Russia. Russia has become stronger in recent years. The country firmly stands on its feet. There are plans of further development, and I think that more and more young people will be interested in representing a great world power on the international arena.

– New relations between states frequently are constructed on the basis of people-to-people diplomacy. In your opinion, how have the relations between ordinary Americans and Russians changed of late – not on the official governmental level, but simply in terms of day-to-day individual communications? What have been the advances in the cultural, business, and medical fields?

– It seems to me that the Russian and the American people in general have a great deal in common. Even during the time of Soviet Union our relations at the people-to-people level – our human relations – were quite good. Since then, the situation has become qualitatively different. After the “Iron Curtain” fell and the Russian society became opened, a large number of people acquired the opportunity to travel. Many Russian citizens have traveled to the U.S., and some even settled in America for permanent residence.

Business, cultural, and other humanitarian links have been tremendously strengthened. Now, our contacts are 10 times more frequent than before. As a whole, it seems to me that Russians and Americans treat each other very kindly.

– Do the local governments of the states within the consular district support your efforts of promoting the interest towards Russian culture, language, and traditions in the U.S.? Or is there a sense that the interest of Americans to Russia is waning?

– The people’s interest towards Russia is increasing again. The events of the 1990s, which were rather difficult for our country, have caused Russia to start “to go off the radar” for politicians in the U.S. Now the situation has changed. There is much political discussion and press coverage about Russia. If you were only to look at my work – I receive a large number of invitations to participate in various events addressing Russian-American relations at universities, public foundations, and other organizations. I always accept these invitations. Just the day before yesterday I spoke at the University of Houston. Next week I will be in San Antonio talking before the Council on International Relations.

With respect to the attitudes of local governments to the development of relations between our countries, I do not feel there are any obstacles. On the contrary, I feel that there is support from the office of the mayor of Houston, as well as the government of the states in our consular district – Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, and Mississippi. I met with the governors and the mayors of major cities. All of them unanimously agree that they are ready to develop relations with Russia. There is nothing to complain about. The attitude of local government units toward cooperation with Russia is very much positive.

– Many Russian-speaking students who graduated from universities in the U.S. would be interested in working in Russia. What are the prospects in this area?

– I think that the prospects here are quite good. President Medvedev in his article “Forward, Russia” emphasized that one of the ways for the modernization of the country and the integration of innovative management approaches into the Russian economy is to attract young brains to Russia – those people who are capable and are full of strength to work for the benefit of the country. For those who went to receive their education abroad or who left to work abroad after obtaining secondary education in Russia, all conditions for working in Russia will be created. So, welcome back to Russia! We count on you very much.

– What are the characteristics of those new relations that came after the pressing of the famous “reset” button? What specific new measures have been taken to enhance the quality of the relationship?

– As I understand, the main objective of “resetting” our relations was to stop the negative trends in our relationship. We needed to prevent the situation from going down a slippery slope. Unfortunately – and it is not at all a secret – there accumulated a number of problems in our bilateral dialogue over the last several years.

The administrations of both countries have found courage and wisdom to stop these negative processes. It was essential to get an unbiased assessment of the state of our relations so that we would be able to work on improving them. It appears to me that both Moscow and Washington now have the political will required for developing our relations constructively. Contacts which were recently made between the heads of the two countries and the heads of foreign affairs departments show that the atmosphere of our bilateral relations has changed for the better. We see the desire of our American partners not only to hear us talk, but also to listen to what we actually have to say. We are willing to place ourselves in each other’s shoes and search for ways to make decisions on those problematic issues that still remain in our relations.

On the whole, Russian-American relations became more business-like and pragmatic. We are working on a new strategic offensive arms limitations treaty.

We have an arrangement for working together on operations in Afghanistan. It addresses such issues as the transportation of cargo, including military cargo, through the Russian territory. We carry on a dialogue on a wide spectrum of current international problems. We continue the discussion of the missile defense programs. The relations between Russia and the U.S. are moving in the right direction.

– What problems still persist?

– We do not say that there are absolutely no problems in our relations. They do exist, but they should not be overly dramatized. Two great powers like Russia and America cannot have identical approaches to all questions. The most important concern is that our differences should not slow down our cooperation in other directions.

Still I wish to add that Presidents Medvedev and Obama have agreed that efforts for expanding trade and economic relations should be intensified. It is very important. The economic foundation of Russian-American relations can be substantially strengthened. In 2008, the trade turnover between the two countries wa more than 34 billion dollars, and it dropped in 2009. This figure is quite high, but, at the same time, for such countries as Russia and the United States, this is obviously not enough. Therefore, we should look for possibilities to strengthen trade and economic relations. Here we have quite good prospects. The headquarters of the largest American energy companies – Exxon, Conoco Phillips, Shell, Chevron, Halliburton, Schlumberger, Baker and Hughes, etc. – are located in Houston. I recently met with the members of management of these companies, and they are all in unanimous agreement that cooperation with Russia in the energy field is essential. We are talking about long-term cooperation, not simply about an easy sale-and-purchase transaction with a quick profit. American energy corporations understand that perfectly and have a desire to continue working in the Russian market. The market itself becomes more and more competitive. It is necessary to make additional efforts, including the development of social infrastructure and processing facilities.

– Mr. Babich, does the Consulate have to deal with any extraordinary situations?

– I consider myself fortunate not to have dealt with the consequences of Hurricane Katrina. I am aware of the enormous efforts undertaken by my predecessor Nikolay Sofinsky and all the staff of the Consulate General to help the citizens of Russia who suffered from the hurricane. I did have to face Hurricane Ike. Of course, it is difficult to compare it with Katrina. Still, we were working for two weeks without electricity.

Unusual situations involving Russian citizens do happen as well. There are arrests, but there are only a few of them. Local authorities now do better about informing us of instances where a Russian citizen is detained. They also inform us about arrests of citizens of other countries of the former Soviet Union, but we are fine with that. We try to help within the limits of what is possible to us. We make sure that the rights of Russian citizens are not violated; we help with lawyers and give advice.

There are other situations too. Two years ago, a Russian girl arrived to one of the states of our consular district under the Work and Travel Program. Due to the negligence of local employers, the girl found herself in a hospital in a very serious condition. Medical assistance was not provided to her in a timely manner, and the situation was critical. Through joint efforts we managed to get her the necessary treatment and allow her condition to improve. Her family has not suffered any financial losses, and the girl has now returned to Russia.

There are also situations involving conflicts within the family between a Russian wife and an American husband. There are problems with child adoption. There are quite a few adopted children in the states of the consular district. Last year I attended a New Year reception in Houston organized for adopted children who came from Russia. There were more than 400 persons there – more than 150 families. I know that some of the children have health problems and perfectly understand that each case of bad treatment of an adopted child presents serious negative ramifications. Fortunately, such cases, not to mention the death of an adopted child, have not happened in the states of the consular district. Nevertheless, when we travel to other states, I always try to meet representatives of social services who are engaged in supervising the welfare of adopted children.

At the same time, I would like to express my gratitude to American families that have adopted children from Russia. If we cannot take care of them ourselves, let’s at least thank those who have helped us deal with the problem.

– How many Russian citizens live in the consular district?

– By our estimate, there are about 50 thousand in the Houston metro area. I think that there are 70 – 75 thousand persons in our consular district.

– The popular perception is that one of the main professional duties of a diplomat is to visit regularly the numerous receptions, conferences, official dinners, and discussions. Is this accurate?

– This is very much true. We simply cannot do without these gatherings. The number of consulates in Houston is the third biggest of all cities in the U.S. – after New York and Los Angeles. There are grounds to believe that it will be the second biggest consular community. There are more than 80 diplomatic missions here, each of which at least once a year organizes a reception during the national holiday of that country. So, we have at least 80 receptions a year. In addition to that, there are other events that I am asked to attend. Mayors’ offices, business organizations, universities, and non-profit foundation send out invitations for their events. I once looked at my calendar and realized that if I responded to each invitation, then 365 days a year would simply not be enough.

It is not necessary to forget at the same time that hospitality events are not only buffet tables and toasts. Conversations about issues of mutual interest also take place. Very practical questions are addressed during these non-formal meetings. In these informal conditions, many of the problems are resolved much more easily. The widely-held belief is that the best place for this purpose in Russia is the banya – a Russian-style sauna. In this country, the best venues for discussing business are hospitality events.