NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg described Wednesday’s meeting of the NATO-Russia Council at the level of ambassadors as “useful” but added that “it was not a meeting of the minds”. Indeed the body that is meeting – the Nato-Russia Council founded in 2002 – was itself a product of the optimism of those early days of Nato-Russia harmony.
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However prior to the meetings Russian Federation issued its own reminder of its capabilities in the Black Sea, dispatching a fleet of vessels, led by its new frigate Admiral Grigorovich involved in a series of war maneuvers.
Russian Federation has been asked for “more details”, he said, noting that he looks forward to “further discussions on this issue”.
“The aircraft of many countries do fly in the region with their transponders off”, Grushko said. Russian Federation aims to constantly keep the West off balance, as it hates NATO’s proximity to zones of influence.
Ahead of the meeting, Russian officials condemned the Western plans to station troops in the Baltics and said little new dialogue was likely. “Although Russia can not influence elections in the United States, the nationalist forces gaining momentum in France and Germany take a pro-Russian stance”, he said.
It is worth mentioning that NATO’s European members are now more concerned about an upcoming Brexit and looming financial crisis, than about a phantom Russian “menace”. Since NATO-Russia relations were terminated, in general, by and large, Moscow will raise the question of how and on what lines the sides could continue to interact with each other, to cooperate or not cooperate, ” he said.
NATO’s military buildup in Eastern Europe will be the main issue on the agenda of the upcoming Russia-NATO Council.
In April, NATO allies and Russia held a “frank and serious” discussion at a meeting of the NATO-Russia Council after it had been suspended for nearly two years in light of the Ukraine crisis.
NATO’s shift from retrenchment and reassurance to deterrence in response to Russian aggression in Eastern Europe was evident in its plans, announced in Warsaw, to deploy four multinational battalions in Poland, Estonia, Lativia and Lithuania on a rotational basis.
“With increased military activity in Europe, there is a risk for incidents, for accidents, and for miscalculations”, Mr. Stoltenberg said in a video message posted on Twitter.
“NATO allies do not and will not recognize Russia’s illegal and illegitimate annexation of Crimea”, Stoltenberg told reporters.
Diplomats told Reuters the Russian proposal appeared to be directed at US military reconnaissance flights that regularly fly through the region, and which Russia has intercepted in what Washington says is an unsafe manner.
The UK has had a hawkish foreign policy on Russian Federation, but its new foreign secretary, Boris Johnson, has in the past blamed the European Union for provoking Russian Federation by trying to build closer ties with Ukraine.
The security situation in Afghanistan was also discussed.
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“We’ve said we’re transparent and we’re willing to talk, but we’ve not had that reachout from them yet”, Scaparrotti said. “North Atlantic Treaty Organisation will explain to the Russian representative why additional battalions are being located in the Baltic countries, Poland and Romania, and what the USA forces are doing there”, the expert spoke about the agenda of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation meeting.
