According to the papers, Clinton really was considering including Russia in NATO. That was the "official U.S. position,” reported German Ambassador Thomas Matussek from Washington in 1994. Clinton, a cheerful southerner with an optimistic nature, believed that his generation – the new generation – had a special responsibility for shaping the future. The U.S. government at the time spoke regularly with its allies about the possibility of Russian accession, such as on January 15 at NATO headquarters in Brussels. Talbott informed the gathered NATO ambassadors of Clinton’s position.