MOSCOW, February 18. /TASS/. Russia hopes for the continuation of negotiations on security assurances, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement on Friday, following a meeting of the North Atlantic Council (NAC) at the level of Defense Ministers.
"The military and political situation in Europe continues to deteriorate. Russia’s proposals on security guarantees are aimed at rectifying this situation, but we have not received a clear response to them from the alliance yet," she said.
"We expect that negotiations on them will continue. We will insist that NATO stop its provocative policy of enlargement, refuse to deploy strike weapons, which threaten us, near our borders, and return the configuration of the alliance’s forces to the positions of 1997," Zakharova added.
The diplomat recalled that on February 16-17 a meeting of the North Atlantic Council (NAC) at the level of Defense Ministers took place in Brussels, with Russia prevailing it, and not for the first time.
"We were blamed for continuing our military buildup not only around Ukraine, but in Belarus as well. The alliance is concerned about the Russian-Belarusian exercises and our troops’ movements within our territory. However, NATO members are obviously not following the news, as after the exercises the Russian troops are already coming back to their permanent deployment locations," she added.
"Escalation for the sake of de-escalation"
Zakharova pointed out that the alliance intends to "punish" Russia for this by deploying additional forces on the "eastern flank," by deploying new naval and air systems, and by expanding cooperation with Georgia and Ukraine, for which the door to NATO still "remains open."
"Once again, NATO is resorting to the tactic of ‘escalation for the sake of de-escalation’. Historical experience shows that once tensions are defused, the alliance never downsizes its military presence," she stressed.
"Judging by the fact that the elaborate plans for NATO’s new multinational battalion groups on the ‘eastern flank’ will be drawn up only by the next meeting of the bloc’s defense ministers in May, NATO military capabilities near Russian borders will merely be increasing in the future," the diplomat stressed.
NATO's military potentials near Russian borders
NATO’s military potential near the Russian borders will only grow in the future, Zakharova said.
"Bearing in mind that detailed plans of NATO’s new multinational battalions on the ‘Eastern flank’ will be elaborated only by the nest meeting of the bloc’s defense ministers in May, NATO’s military potentials near the Russian borders will only grow in the future," she said.