Gorbachev also noted in his recent op-ed piece that when “[r]elations between the two nations are in a severe crisis . . . there is one well-tested means available for accomplishing a [way out]”—that is, to initiate “a dialogue based on mutual respect.” President Eisenhower similarly observed: “none of these issues, great or small” separating the United States and Russia “is insoluble.” “[T]he hunger for peace is in the hearts of all peoples—those of Russia . . . no less than of our own country.”

President Trump and President Putin now confront the challenge to heed these words and to lead their nations—and the world—to a better place.

Jeffrey Burt, James Hitch and Peter Pettibone served as partners of prominent international laws firms, heading the Soviet and Russian practices of Arnold & Porter LLP, Baker & McKenzie, and Hogan Lovells. Thomas Shillinglaw was the lawyer for Corning Inc.’s projects in that part of the world. The authors spent decades negotiating transactions and resolving disputes in the USSR, Russia, and Ukraine involving their clients and government officials and state and privatized enterprises at local and national levels. They have served on many inter-governmental advisory committees, as well as in various leadership positions for the American Bar Association and international trade and arbitration organizations relating to those countries.

Image: A billboard showing a pictures of US president-elect Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin is seen through pedestrians in Danilovgrad, Montenegro, November 16, 2016. REUTERS/Stevo Vasiljevic