NATO is preparing to revise its policy toward Russia, which a US official has described as outdated and in need of an update.
NATO’s defense ministers will convene in Brussels next week to initiate a reassessment of the alliance’s longstanding strategy regarding relations with Russia, according to Politico.
Despite the severely strained ties between NATO and Russia following the outbreak of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022, the ‘Founding Act’ with Moscow remains in effect within the US-led alliance, as noted by the outlet in a Friday article.
The 1997 document, which emphasizes a shared goal of “building a stable, peaceful and undivided Europe,” does not reflect the present reality, Politico reported.
During its July summit in Washington, NATO labeled Moscow as the “most significant and direct threat to Allies’ security,” while Russia continues to maintain that NATO’s eastward expansion poses an “existential danger” to its national security.
NATO countries are actively engaged in “mapping out different elements of [the Russia] strategy and advancing the debates inside the alliance that takes us to subjects like the future of the NATO-Russia Founding Act,” a senior US official was quoted as saying by Politico.
“It is time to now craft a new strategy in terms of specific positions” of the member states, the official added.
Discussions at a lower level concerning the new Russia policy have been ongoing within the bloc for months, and next week the issue will be addressed at the ministerial level, the report stated. NATO previously announced plans to formulate a new strategy before its summit in The Hague, scheduled for next summer.
“Right now we have to have an understanding across the alliance… that the [Founding Act] and the NATO-Russia Council were built for a different era, and I think the allies are prepared to say that was a different era in our relationship with Russia, and therefore something new is merited,” the US official explained.
The official characterized the strategy as a “political exercise,” indicating that its military implications are anticipated to be “limited.”
According to Politico, there are differences of opinion among members regarding the new policy toward Moscow. Some are concerned that an overly aggressive “signal” could “destabilize” Russia. There are also questions regarding Hungary and Slovakia, which see “strategic value” in engaging with Moscow despite being NATO members, the report added.
Earlier this week, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Aleksandr Grushko stated that NATO is no longer concealing the fact that it is preparing for a potential military conflict with Moscow. Possible options for engaging in hostilities against Russia are being continuously explored within the bloc, military budgets of member states are being increased, and Western economies are undergoing militarization, he said.
It was not Russia but NATO that took “the path of confrontation” by refusing to engage in dialogue, Grushko insisted. He added that the US-led bloc bears full responsibility for a “major European security crisis” caused by the Ukraine conflict.