Thomas Pickering has seen Russia evolve from a Cold War enemy to a more democratic ally and now to a nation stuck somewhere in between.

The former U.S. ambassador to Russia plans to discuss his concerns with this latest incarnation Saturday at St. John's College. The lecture, "The U.S. Response to 'New' Russia," is the last of three on Russia presented by the Santa Fe Council on International Relations.

"I think people in the United States have a serious interest. They have been frightened by the notion that Russia is the only strategic threat to the United States. We are in some serious danger of an accident of calculations," Pickering said in a phone interview.

Allen Macomber, organizer of the lectures, coordinated the series last summer around the time Russia invaded Georgia. Oil prices had spiked at the time, and positive relations between the U.S. and Russia were imperative, Macomber said.

"Putin was acting very negatively toward the West, toward the U.S., and we wanted to re-examine the differences from when the Soviet Union collapsed (to) what Russian relations were like up through the '90s," Macomber said.

Pickering outlined the importance of U.S. relations with Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. Crucial issues have ranged from disagreements over missile defense to oil exports, from nuclear nonproliferation discussions to dealing with Iran's nuclear programs.

How President Barack Obama chooses to deal with Russia will characterize international relations for decades to come, Pickering said. Learning about the turbulent recent history of relations with Russia is only one step toward understanding the current issues, he said.

Pickering has served in the Foreign Service for more than five decades. He served in Russia shortly after the fall of the Soviet Union, from 1993 to 1997.

"I saw a great deal of change taking place ... and saw some of the root causes of problems," Pickering said.

He has also spent time as the ambassador in Jordan, Israel, Niger, India and El Salvador. He was the ambassador to the United Nations under President George H.W. Bush, and served in the Clinton administration as under secretary of state for political affairs, CIR officials said in a news release. He was named to the highest foreign service honor of Career Ambassador and currently works for the international consulting company of Hills and Co. based in Washington, D.C.

Contact Julia Leitner at 986-3050 or jleitner@sfnewmexican.com.

IF YOU GO

What: Lecture by former Ambassador Thomas Pickering, "The U.S. Response to 'New' Russia"

When: 2:30 to 4:30 p.m. Saturday

Where: Great Hall, St. John's College

Cost: $20 per person; students free. Purchase tickets online at www.sfcir.org or by phone at 982-4931.