US firms prospering in Asia, Russia(视频)_美文

US firms prospering in Asia, Russia(视频)

Standing nearby at the desalination plant was Michael Ruffner, who came from Florida to Vladivostok to install Aqua-Chem machines that convert salt water into drinking water for 50,000 people. "So what we are seeing is a really wonderful joint cooperation between the two nations, when we work side-by-side for a common goal," Ruffner said.

Back at APEC, Ed Verona, president of the US-Russia Business Council, believes shared economic interests will see Moscow and Washington through turbulence expected later this month when the US Congress is to add a human-rights clause to legislation normalizing trade relations with Russia.

"We're able to operate on separate tracks," said Verona, who was previously a vice president of ExxonMobil Russia in Moscow. "That we are beginning to build up enough commercial and economic relationship that isn't wholly dependent on the state of our bilateral relationship on the political and geopolitical plane."

Despite the Kremlin-White House political roller coaster, economic interests shared by Russia and the United States may provide a long-term anchor for the two nations.