Negotiations within the framework of the Russia-NATO Council in 2020 did not take place due to the fault of Moscow. This statement is contained in a report by the organization’s secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, released on Tuesday, March 16.
Stoltenberg points out that in 2020 the alliance remained open to dialogue within the Council, and accuses Moscow that the meeting never took place. According to him, since February 2020, NATO has repeatedly sent proposals to Russia to convene a meeting of the Council, but Russia has consistently rejected them.
Despite this, the document notes that contacts with the Russian leadership have continued. For example, in February 2020, Stoltenberg met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the Munich Security Conference, and in July of the same year, the head of the NATO Military Committee, Stuart Peach, and Chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, Valery Gerasimov, had a telephone conversation.
Earlier, the NATO Secretary General called Russia one of the main threats to the alliance, along with China, climate change and terrorism. At the same time, on March 15, Stoltenberg said that he did not see a direct threat from Russia and China – and for this one should thank the member countries of the alliance. “If there is an attack, it will provoke a reaction from all allies. This is one of the main reasons thanks to which we have been able to keep the peace for more than 70 years,” he stressed.