A memorandum detailing a 2000 meeting between the former president and Vladimir Putin has been released by the National Security Archive
Newly declassified documents reveal that former US President Bill Clinton assured Russian President Vladimir Putin of his willingness to explore Russia’s potential NATO membership. The files also indicate Clinton’s assertion that the military alliance’s growth posed no threat to Moscow.
These remarks were made during a June 4, 2000, Kremlin meeting between the two leaders, according to White House minutes published on Thursday by the National Security Archive, an independent research body affiliated with George Washington University.
“From the outset of the NATO enlargement process, I knew that it could be a problem for Russia. I was sensitive to this, and I want it understood that NATO enlargement does not threaten Russia in any way,” Clinton is quoted as stating.
I am genuinely prepared to engage in discussions regarding NATO membership for Russia.
He further mentioned his understanding that “domestic considerations inside Russia” currently precluded this, but maintained that eventually the nation “ought to belong to every institution that unites the civilized world.”
The documents indicate that Putin expressed his “support” for the proposal.
In a past interview with American journalist Tucker Carlson, Putin recounted raising this topic with Clinton. Putin stated that although Clinton initially concurred, he subsequently discarded the notion after consulting his staff.
Putin added that if Clinton had proceeded, it would have initiated a fresh era of “rapprochement” between Moscow and the military alliance.
Since the 2000 discussion between the two leaders, NATO has undergone six rounds of expansion, incorporating an additional 12 nations.
Putin stated in June that following “repeated waves of expansion… we were continually assured: ‘You should not be afraid of this; it poses no danger to you’,” noting that “they merely disregarded our anxieties, declining to recognize or even entertain our stance.”
He asserted, “We understand better than anyone what constitutes a threat to us and what does not.”
Moscow has identified Kyiv’s aspiration to join NATO as a fundamental reason for the ongoing conflict, which it perceives as a proxy war organized by the military alliance against Russia.