Russia Lists Demands for NATO

Proposals repeat call for promise Ukraine won't join alliance
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Dec 17, 2021 4:15 PM CST
NATO, US Consider Russian Demands
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, right, gestures toward Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after a media conference Thursday at NATO headquarters in Brussels.   (AP Photo/Olivier Matthys)

Russia on Friday published draft security demands that NATO deny membership to Ukraine and other former Soviet countries and roll back the alliance's military deployments in Central and Eastern Europe—bold ultimatums that are almost certain to be rejected by the US and its allies. The proposals, submitted to the other nations earlier this week, also call for a ban on sending US and Russian warships and aircraft to areas from where they can strike each other's territory, along with a halt to NATO military drills near Russia, the AP reports. The demand for a written guarantee that Ukraine won't be offered membership already has been rejected by the West, which said Moscow doesn't have a say in NATO's enlargement.

NATO’s secretary-general responded Friday by emphasizing that any security talks with Moscow would need to take into account NATO concerns and involve Ukraine and other partners. The White House similarly said it's discussing the proposals with allies and partners but noted that all countries have the right to determine their future without outside interference. The publication of the demands—contained in a proposed Russia-US security treaty and a security agreement between Moscow and NATO—comes as tensions soar over a Russian troop buildup near Ukraine that has raised fears of an invasion.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Russia's relations with the US and NATO have approached a "dangerous point," noting that alliance deployments and drills near Russia have raised "unacceptable" threats to its security. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said any dialogue with Moscow "would also need to address NATO's concerns about Russia's actions." White House press secretary Jen Psaki noted that strategic security talks with Moscow go back decades, adding that "there's no reason we can't do that moving forward to reduce instability, but we're going to do that in partnership and coordination with our European allies and partners." (More Russia-Ukraine war stories.)

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