In a statement issued yesterday, Russia’s Foreign Ministry announced that it intends to soon present a “comprehensive proposal on legal security guarantees as part of preparations for the next round of the Russia-U.S. dialogue on strategic stability.” Coming off the Dec. 7 meeting between Presidents Biden and Putin, in which Putin insisted that the U.S. provide Russia security guarantees regarding Ukraine and NATO, the statement continues that “we will advocate holding an in-depth discussion of the military aspects of ensuring security via defense ministries with the engagement of the foreign ministries of Russia and NATO countries.” It noted that Biden had indicated a readiness to hold a “serious dialogue on issues related to ensuring the security of the Russian Federation,” and that such a dialogue is “urgently needed today when the relations between Russia and the collective West continue to decay and have approached a critical line.” And, it emphasized, that since “numerous loose interpretations of our position have emerged in recent days,” it is time to clarify exactly where Russia stands on these key issues, the first of which is that “escalating a confrontation with our country is absolutely unacceptable.” The document also stresses that legal guarantees from the West must be made “within a specific timeframe.”
The statement goes on to enumerate the many provocative actions taken by the West regarding Ukraine over the last several years including undermining the Minsk agreements and “preparing for a military scenario in Donbass.” Instead of reining in their Ukrainian protégés, the statement points out, “NATO countries are pushing Kiev towards aggressive steps,” with an increasing number of unplanned military exercises by the U.S. and its allies in the Black Sea and provocative flights by NATO members’ aircraft, including strategic bombers in close proximity to Russia’s borders. “The militarization of Ukraine’s territory and pumping it with weapons are ongoing.” Moreover, the Foreign Ministry warns, Ukraine is being drawn into NATO, “which is fraught with the deployment of strike missile systems there with a minimal flight time to Central Russia, and other destabilizing weapons. Such irresponsible behavior creates grave military risks for all parties involved, up to and including a large-scale conflict in Europe.”
The Foreign Ministry documents the fact that discussion of Ukraine’s “hypothetical NATO membership” is a violation of a series of agreements signed by Western nations over the past several years regarding the principle of indivisible security in the Euro-Atlantic, and violates as well “the promises given to the Soviet leaders.” The Charter for European Security adopted at the OSCE Istanbul summit stressed that the participating states “will not strengthen their security at the expense of the security of other states.” Yet, the Foreign Ministry states, “NATO has been persistently moving eastwards all these years while neglecting Moscow’s concerns.” In addition, each new member adds to “NATO’s anti-Russia charge.”
