Clinton gift of “reset“ button lost in translation

(7 Mar 2009) SHOTLIST 1. Clinton presenting Lavrov with gift; “reset“ button, Lavrov and Clinton pressing button together to “reset“ US-Russian relations, UPSOUND: (English) Clinton: “I wanted to present you with a little gift which represents what President Obama and Vice President Biden and I have been saying and that is: ’We want to reset our relationship.“ Lavrov: “Let’s do it together.“ Clinton: “So we will do it together.“ Lavrov: “Thank you very much.“ Clinton: “We worked hard to get the right Russian word. Do you think we got it?“ Lavrov: “You got it wrong, it should be ’perezagruzka’, this says ’peregruzka’ which means ’overcharged’. Clinton: “Well we won’t let you do that to us, I promise.“ 2. Close of “reset“ button STORYLINE A round of talks between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton may have turned out well, but their meeting in Geneva got off to an odd and awkward start. With reporters looking on, Clinton met Lavrov and handed him a gift - a green box tied in green ribbon. He unwrapped it to reveal a “reset button,“ a lighthearted reminder of Vice President Joe Biden’s recent remark that the administration of US President Barack Obama is hitting the reset button with Russia after years of friction during the Bush administration. The trouble was, the Russian-language label the Americans put on top of the button had the wrong word. Before she realised the mistake, Clinton assured Lavrov her staff had “worked hard“ to get it right. Was it right? she inquired with a smile. “You got it wrong,“ Lavrov responded, also smiling. He said the word the Americans chose - “peregruzka“ - meant “overloaded“ or “overcharged“ rather than “reset“. Clinton quickly retorted with: “well, we won’t let you do that to us, I promise“. It was an embarrassment for the Americans, but in front of the cameras, the two pushed the button together to show they share a desire for improved relations. The subsequent meeting between the two produced no announced breakthrough, in arms control or other issues, but it seemed to set the stage for a new beginning in US-Russian relations. Clinton finished off her week-long European debut tour with a trip to Turkey on Saturday. Find out more about AP Archive: Twitter: Facebook: ​​ Instagram: You can license this story through AP Archive: