Combat teams drive during joint exercises of the armed forces of Russia and Belarus
Brussels:
Russia’s commitment to a military exercise in Belarus and on Ukraine’s borders marks a “dangerous moment” for European security, NATO chief said on Thursday.
“We are closely monitoring Russia’s deployment in Belarus, the largest since the end of the Cold War,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters during a press conference with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
“This is a dangerous moment for European security. The number of Russian troops is increasing. The warning time for a possible attack is reduced.”
Stoltenberg and Johnson both warned Russia that NATO is deploying more troops to its eastern member states, such as Poland and Romania, and that Russia’s behavior would not deter them.
“Renewed Russian aggression will lead to more NATO presence, not less,” Stoltenberg said, thanking the British leader for sending troop reinforcements to Poland.
Both leaders said NATO is ready to engage in talks with Russia about de-escalation and arms control, but warned the alliance will not compromise on its open-door policy.
Russia’s broad demands for security guarantees include a insistence that its southern neighbor Ukraine should not be allowed to join NATO.
“When the Berlin Wall came down, the people of Europe made it clear that they wanted their freedom and their security to be inextricably linked.” said Johnson.
“We must resist, we must oppose any return to the time when the fate of nations is decided over their heads by a handful of great powers,” he said.
Stoltenberg said he wrote a letter to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Thursday, urging Moscow to resume dialogue in the revived format of the NATO-Russia Council.
Several attempts have been made to reach Russian President Vladimir Putin since the beginning of Russia’s build-up, most recently by President Emmanuel Macron of France and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.
But Russia has continued to increase its presence and agility by holding exercises in Belarus and the Black Sea, while NATO continues to support its eastern flank.
“We’re seeing the massive accumulation of huge numbers of tactical battalion groups on Ukraine’s borders — 70 or more.” said Johnson.
“This is probably the most dangerous moment, I would say, over the coming days, in what is the biggest security crisis Europe has faced in decades.”
Earlier, ahead of a meeting with British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, Lavrov had warned Western threats would do nothing to ease tensions over Ukraine.
“Ideological approaches, ultimatums, threats – this is the road to nowhere,” Lavrov said, adding that Britain’s ties to Moscow were “at their lowest point in recent years”.
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