NATO changes tone: Chief of US-led bloc tells EU officials its members face ‘no imminent military threat’ from Russia or China
15 Mar, 2021 18:43
Russian and Chinese marines taking part in joint excercises in Russia's Far East. © Sputnik / Vitaliy Ankov
There is no imminent threat of a military attack from Russia – or China – against any NATO member states, but the bloc’s very existence is the main reason for this situation, its Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has told the EU.
Stoltenberg made the statement – somewhat unusual given NATO’s typically harsh anti-Russia rhetoric – during an address to the European Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs on Monday.
“I was asked about whether I see any threat against NATO allies from China or from Russia. I don't see any imminent threat of a military attack against any NATO ally,” he said.
“But one reason for that is that we have NATO” and its system of “all for one and one for all” collective defense, the Secretary General said – a reference to Article 5 of the NATO treaty, which stipulates that an attack on one member state triggers a response from the whole alliance.
"That's one of the main reasons why we’ve been able to preserve peace in Europe for more than 70 years,” he insisted.
However, one shouldn’t expect a major shift in NATO’s relations with Moscow and Beijing, as Stoltenberg still lamented what he called “Russia’s destabilizing behavior” and “the rise of China” among the main security challenges for the bloc – along with terrorism, cyberattacks and climate change.
Last month, the NATO head insisted that the military alliance of 30 European states and the North American countries would be “glad” to cooperate with Russia, but was also “ready” for a confrontation if the need arises. He also called for more funds to be allocated to boost the bloc’s presence near Russia’s borders.
That's called 'Empire Building'! And it is the greatest threat to peace in Europe as NATO seeks to virtually surround Russia with NATO-friendly countries. This is completely against the spirit of the agreement between Russia and NATO when Gorbachev broke up the Soviet Union.
Tensions between NATO and Moscow have been running high since 2014 when Crimea rejoined Russia following a referendum, which the West refuses to recognise, amid the conflict in eastern Ukraine. The bloc responded by deploying more troops and military hardware in Eastern Europe, while sharply intensifying aerial and naval patrols in the region.
Contrary to repeated claims from Poland, the Baltic States and others, Moscow has denied harboring aggressive intentions against any NATO members – and has labeled the alliance’s buildup and military games on its doorstep as a major security threat for the continent, arguing that it only increases the chances of real conflict.
This is a real, or, at least apparent turn-around from the relentless demonizing of Russia by NATO, UK, US, and several EU countries. How are they going to sell weapons systems to Russia's neighbours with a message like that?
Is this message showing concern about the growing relationship between Russia and China? Are they trying to slow that down?
Or is he just trying to cool the rhetoric, like the article below?
Biden White House resorting to ‘siege of Russia’ by sending troops to NATO borders & ships to Black Sea – leading Moscow senator
15 Mar, 2021 10:59
FILE PHOTO: US servicemen participating in the Saber Strike exercises in Estonia. © Sputnik
With little prospect of scoring a decisive military victory over Russia, Washington is increasingly locked into a strategy of surrounding the world’s largest country with its forces, one of Moscow’s top politicians has claimed.
Aleksey Pushkov, a senator and former head of the parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee, argued in comments on Telegram on Friday that the White House was struggling to demonstrate the tough stance it had promised against the Kremlin, because it had run out of viable options.
“The hesitation about Russia in Washington is evident,” he said, “not because there is a tactical pause, or as a negotiating tactic – [President Joe] Biden is in no mood to negotiate with Russia at all – but for another reason.”
While the new US leader has slammed his predecessor for supposedly making concessions to Moscow, Biden has since found that “the potential for hostility towards Moscow has been almost entirely mobilized by [former president Donald] Trump, both bilaterally and through NATO,” Pushkov wrote.
The senator believes that there are only three possible options for the White House if it seeks to make good on those election promises and strike an even tougher note against Russia.
“Sanctions from hell,” such as the still unapproved package proposed in 2018 by a group of senators including John McCain and Lindsey Graham, “would hit US and European investors, and bring US relations with Russia to a dangerous line, as with Iran,” he argued. “Only Russia is not Iran.”
The second option, Pushkov argues, would be to “push Ukraine into a new war in the Donbass, with US support.” However, the politician says, Kiev’s starting position in the region is unfavorable and it is hard to see how it could change its fortunes. So, he added, “it is not in the US plans to interfere in hostilities on the side of Ukraine.”
Finally, the only remaining option Biden has to punish Russia would be “building up the armed forces on the borders with Russia and in the Black Sea,” Pushkov claims. But, far from being a departure from his predecessor’s policies, “this is simply a continuation of the US’ previous approach under Trump.”
“For these reasons,” he said, “Biden’s toughness on Russia has so far been largely rhetorical. There will be anti-Russian actions, but their aim will be a prolonged siege of ‘Putin’s Russia’ rather than a set of abrupt and risky steps that could bring the situation to the brink of military conflict.”
Russia has already warned that increased activity by NATO members near its borders could lead to disaster, with the US-led bloc staging a series of exercises and flybys across the frontier. Russia’s Deputy Minister of Defense Alexander Fomin said that, throughout 2020, NATO air and naval presence “has increased significantly, and situations that can lead to serious incidents are increasingly emerging.”
Last week, the Kremlin expressed concern at reports in the New York Times which claimed that the White House was mulling “a series of clandestine actions” aimed at Moscow. The steps, it said, were intended as a response to the SolarWinds hack for which Washington holds Russia responsible. President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters that “the fact that the newspaper doesn’t rule out that the American state could be involved in cybercrime is definitely of great concern to us.”
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