(Brussels) NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has decided to convene the NATO-Russia Council on January 12 and is “in contact” with Moscow on this subject, an Atlantic Alliance official in Brussels said on Sunday.
In recent months, Mr. Stoltenberg has offered to Moscow on several occasions to resume dialogue within this cooperation body created in 2002, which is currently on hold due to the conflict in Ukraine.
But the Russian authorities did not respond favorably.
For this meeting convened on January 12, “we are in contact with Russia”, simply indicated this NATO official on condition of anonymity.
For the past seven years, the Atlantic Alliance has consistently denounced Russia’s annexation of the Ukrainian Crimean peninsula in March 2014 and demanded respect for Ukraine’s territorial sovereignty.
Russia and the Western camp accuse each other of provocations by strengthening military capabilities at their common borders.
In mid-December, Russia presented two treaties, one for the United States and the other for NATO, summarizing its demands for de-escalation.
These texts prohibit the enlargement of NATO, to Ukraine in particular, and limit Western military cooperation in Eastern Europe and the former USSR, without imposing similar measures on Russia.
The January 12 meeting is the first proposed by Jens Stoltenberg since the announcement of Russian demands.
Also scheduled for that day is a meeting of the NATO Military Committee, bringing together the Chiefs of Defense of the 30 member countries.
Last Thursday, Jens Stoltenberg reaffirmed his support for Ukraine and his determination to protect all NATO allies against Russia’s actions, while saying he was always open to dialogue with the country led by Vladimir Putin.