Stoltenberg invites Moscow to NATO Council meeting – Russia | News from Germany on world events | >

Secretary General of the North Atlantic Alliance Jens Stoltenberg called on Moscow to host a meeting of the NATO-Russia Council. The interview with the head of the alliance is published on Monday, June 7, by Die Welt.

“We invited the Russian government to a new meeting more than a year ago, but there was no positive response,” Stoltenberg said. According to him, there have been no meetings of the Council for 19 months.

“We have many topics for discussion that relate to the joint interests of NATO and Russia,” the Secretary General said. According to him, the ball is now on the side of Moscow. “Relations between NATO and Russia have recently reached a level below which they have not dropped since the end of the Cold War,” he stressed, adding that dialogue is the best way to overcome tensions.

Exchange of information on military maneuvers

The Alliance Secretary General is confident that one of the possible topics for discussion could be the mutual exchange of information on military maneuvers “to prevent misunderstandings and possible escalation.” Another topic would be to achieve “sufficient transparency” in the military activity of each of the parties to avoid unforeseen situations, Stoltenberg emphasized.

Earlier, on May 18, the chairman of the NATO military committee, Stuart Peach, expressed regret that Moscow did not respond to the alliance’s proposal to hold a Council meeting. Peach stressed that the North Atlantic Alliance continues to “strive for a constructive relationship with Russia.” He also added that NATO keeps channels of communication with Moscow open.

The NATO-Russia Council last met in July 2019. The post of Russia’s representative to the alliance has remained vacant since January 2018, after Alexander Grushko, who held this position, became Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.

see also:

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  Of the countries of the former USSR, only the Baltic countries are currently full members of the European Union: Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia joined the EU on May 1, 2004. Six more countries participate in the EU’s Eastern Partnership program: three of them – Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia – have signed an association agreement with the EU.

• 

  The European Union and NATO in the post-Soviet space

  EU Eastern Partnership Program

  The Eastern Partnership program, aimed at deepening ties between the republics of the former USSR and the European Union, currently involves six post-Soviet countries – Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. It is noteworthy that Belarus and Armenia are simultaneously members of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), which also includes Russia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.

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  The European Union and NATO in the post-Soviet space

  Eastern Partnership at two speeds

  Recently, the division of the Eastern Partnership countries into two groups has intensified. The first includes Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine, which have signed an association agreement with the EU. In the second – Belarus, Azerbaijan and Armenia, which did not conclude such an agreement. An associated state can get duty-free access to EU markets in exchange for reforms.

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  The European Union and NATO in the post-Soviet space

  Who needs an EU visa

  Citizens of the Baltic states, which joined the EU in 2004, enjoy the right of free movement and can work in any EU country on an equal basis with citizens of one or another EU state. Holders of Ukrainian, Moldovan or Georgian passports can visit Schengen countries without visas. Citizens of Russia, Belarus, Armenia and Azerbaijan still require a visa for these purposes.

• 

  The European Union and NATO in the post-Soviet space

  NATO integration

  Of the republics of the former USSR, only three Baltic countries are still full members of the North Atlantic Alliance. Ukraine and Georgia have been granted the status of a “postgraduate country”: this means that the state has officially expressed its interest in joining NATO and has received an invitation to join an intensive dialogue on membership issues

  Author: Alexandra Elkina

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