NATO Expansion in EU a Cold War Relic: Putin Says Russia Doesn’t Want Arms Race

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday in an interview with Serbian media published Wednesday that Russia does not want a new arms race.

“We will not close our eyes to US cruise missile deployment [in Europe] and its direct threat to our security. We will have to take efficient retaliatory measures. But as a responsible and sensible country, Russia is not interested in a new arms race”, he said, according to Sputnik.

According to the Russian president, Moscow sent in December to Washington certain proposals on keeping the INF Treaty. Moreover, Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that Russia is ready for a serious dialogue with the United States on the whole strategic agenda.

However, the United States seems to have a “dismantling” policy towards the global arms control, the president added.

“Despite the US saying it wants to exit the INF, we are open to dialogue on how we can keep it in place. We sent a number of concrete proposals on the matter to the US in December. We are open to serious talks on the entire strategic agenda of our two countries,” Putin told two Serbian newspapers.

He said the United States was trying to “dismantle the system of international agreements on arms control … or adhere to those clauses that serve their interests.” “The announcement that they would quit the INF was another link in this chain of events,” Putin added.

During the interview, Putin has also urged the Western partners to establish dialogue based on principles of international law. According to Putin, this is the key to keep global peace and regional stability intact.

“This situation is the result of continuing unilateral actions by the United States and several other Western countries, including their use of force. This has created a climate of confrontation and mistrust,” he said.

“We are calling on Western colleagues to refrain from blackmail, threats and provocations and respect international laws and engage in dialogue between our countries based on the UN Charter. This is the only way to preserve peace,” he concluded.

Putin also emphasized that the NATO expansion in Europe is a destructive strategy, adding that this policy is “a cold war relic”. According to the president, Alliance is currently trying to strengthen its position in the Balkans.

Putin spoke with Serbian newspapers ahead of his trip to the Balkan country. He said that Serbia’s decision to become closer to the European Union would not hinder “multifaceted cooperation” between Moscow and Belgrade.

However, the Russian president has criticized the European Union for its inaction after Kosovo’s parliamentary vote to transform security forces into a regular army.

“We were surprised by EU’s passivity after the Kosovo ‘parliament’ decided to transform the Kosovo Security Force into a fully-fledged army. Obviously, Serbs living in this province [Kosovo] see this decision as a direct threat to their security, which also poses a serious risk of escalation in the region,” Putin told two Serbian newspapers.

He warned Brussels that it was “not in the EU’s best interest to close its eyes to such unilateral actions that are a blatant violation of international laws, especially if Brussels plans to continue mediating the dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina.”

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has told the Norwegian News Agency that the alliance is ready to use force if Russia misses the deadline of February 2 to remedy its alleged violations of the INF Treaty.
The Russian Foreign Ministry said Friday that “attempts to conduct dialogue in the form of ultimatums, recalling Russia’s ‘last chance,’ as Stoltenberg said, run counter to statements that saving the treaty is the alliance’s priority. On the contrary, such statements hinder addressing the situation via professional dialogue”.

H.M