A new cold war? 'Nonsense'

United States Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice has termed talks about a new cold war with Russia a mere 'nonsense' and said that Washington was committed to work with Moscow on global issues.

"The recent talk about a new cold war is hyperbolic nonsense. Our relations today are fundamentally different (with Russia) than they were when all we shared was the desire to avoid mutual annihilation," she said, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday.

However, she asked the Russian leadership to take up its responsibility in meeting global energy needs in view of the fact that international crude oil prices was now hovering around $90 a barrel.

"Russia should contribute to a transparent and

open global energy economy, not a monopolistic one," Rice said.

Referring to improvement in America's relations with Vietnam, Libya and other countries, she said the US has 'no permanent enemies' and this is also the case with Russia.

She said the United States and Russia are working constructively on many issues -- from counter-proliferation to counter-terrorism and the pursuit of peace in Middle East. However, expressing her concerns over 'unwise and irresponsible rhetoric from Russia', she said, "We believe that Russia's greatness will ultimately be secured best through greater political freedom for its people and through the establishment of strong institutions that check the power of the state, rather serve the interests of a few."