An unusual gathering took place in Washington on May 21, 2024. At a time when US-Russia relations hit the lowest historical level, when Washington keeps pumping tens of billions of dollars plus huge volumes of all kinds of weapons in its proxy war with Russia in Ukraine and rejects the calls for using diplomacy to end this conflict, a large group of American and Russians, some via Zoom, assembled in the Washington Times headquarters, not too far from the Capitol Hill. The subject was the construction of the global New York-London highway, a breathtaking idea with great vision that also comes with significant geopolitical challenges. Indeed, if one looks at the map, the highway’s construction would require a tunnel or bridge over the Bering Strait to connect the American state of Alaska with the Russian Peninsula of Chukotka.
Those who are ready to immediately dismiss this project as a pipe dream at best or Putin’s sinister effort to undermine American and British democracies at worst should take note that this was a bipartisan group that believes that this highway “offers a credible proposition for helping calm turbulent international waters, as it would potentially benefit every nation on earth.” As organizers stated correctly, despite the current problems between the US and Russia, “the two countries have demonstrated the ability to work together in the International Space Station.” In historical terms, not so long ago, they were allies in the war with Nazi Germany. Given the upcoming June 6, 80th anniversary of D-Day, a celebration of its success should be combined with gratitude for the contribution of the Red Army on the Eastern fronts.