Susan Eisenhower, an expert on United States - Russia relations and granddaughter of former Columbia President and United States President Dwight Eisenhower, spoke on a range of issues in Roone Arledge Cinema on Monday night in an event sponsored by the Columbia University International Relations Forum.  Joining her was Lincoln Mitchell, Arnold A. Saltzman Assistant Professor in the Practice of International Politics from the Columbia School of International and Public Affairs.

For almost 60 minutes, Eisenhower and Mitchell engaged in a dialogue that focused on the relations between Russia and America today compared to the relations between the USSR and America in the midst of the Cold War.  Both also spoke about the role of the United States in the world today numerous times in the dialogue and in the Q & A session that followed.

Mitchell was the first to speak and after updating the audience on the baseball score, talked about the impact Russia has on the world despite its reduced importance.  “Russia is a state – it might not be a threat, but it is a state,” he said.  He then added that Russia “has a bearing on our goals around the world.”

Eisenhower then followed and started with a quick summary of her background and her life.  After speaking about relations with Russia and Russia’s decreased importance in the Americans’ eye, she touched on life during the Cold War and how the fear and chaos that was prevalent back then has easily been forgotten.  She then transitioned the dialogue into a discussion on America’s foreign policy and its goals.  One of her most memorable quotes was that America needs to know “how to make short-term decisions that don’t serve as long-term obstacles.”  Throughout the night, both Eisenhower and Mitchell brought up the point that Americans need to be liked around the globe for their policies to work.

Another point that was repeated many times throughout the night was the fact that American’s power is waning in the global community and America needs to prepare for its reduced role.  Eisenhower pointed out that America never has had a chance to question its identity in the modern world since it has never relinquished power, whereas Eastern Europe, Western Europe and Russia were all forced to question their roles when their importance was diminished.  Are we the world’s greatest democracy? A superpower? Or first among equals? She questioned.

In the middle of the night, Eisenhower briefly mentioned her decision to leave behind her Republican background and support Barack Obama in the 2008 elections — a decision that sent shockwaves throughout Washington, D.C. and the Republican Party.  She conveyed to the audience the difficulty of the decision and the agonizing choice of whether to speak at the Democratic National convention.

At the end, a brief Q&A session took place that included questions on a potential return to power by Russia, the rise of China, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.  In brief, both agreed that the United States has not really done anything to help Russia regain global respect, with Eisenhower exclaiming “This is crazy!” when she brought up the fact that there is no 123 agreement, which dictates cooperation between countries when dealing with nuclear weapons, between America and Russia.  Eisenhower also mentioned that the US treats China and Russia differently because of China’s economic power.  The night then ended with the question “what happens if North Korea falls apart tomorrow?” that elicited laughs from speakers and audience alike but was mainly shrugged off by the speakers.