“Whether Russia’s demands, which are unacceptable on the part of the Allies, were designed to find an excuse for the escalation of the situation or a direct invasion of Ukraine, we will see soon. What matters is that NATO and the EU are united, strong and we “We will act in accordance with the situation that will develop. At present, a lot is in Russia ‘s hands,” said the Foreign Minister.
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Rinkēvičs pointed out that the consultations could still continue. The Minister expressed his understanding that people, taking into account the history of Latvia and the history of the European continent, are concerned about every conversation and statement. In his view, this is understandable. Rinkēvičs emphasized that there is unity among the allies and the actions that are being taken make the Foreign Minister think that everyone is aware of the seriousness of the situation, the security situation and is ready to react.
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“Everyone is ready for a serious diplomatic process with Russia. Everyone is ready to work to reduce tensions, but without violating the clearly defined principles of collective defense and the ‘open door’.” It is too early to discuss what will happen next. It was agreed, however, that work would continue to continue the dialogue, “said the Foreign Minister.
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He mentioned that after the OSCE consultations, at some point a reaction from Moscow could follow, so further work will take place. The Minister expressed the position that neither NATO nor the EU had grounds to change its position and principled position against Russia’s demands.
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It has already been written that NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Wednesday after the NATO-Russia Council meeting that the two sides have agreed to hold more talks, although they have significant differences of opinion.
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After the meeting, Stoltenberg said that the alliance with Russia had significant differences of opinion regarding the “security guarantees” demanded by the Kremlin, but that NATO allies are ready to meet with Russian representatives again.
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“There are significant differences of opinion between NATO allies and Russia on these issues, and these differences will not be easy to bridge,” Stoltenberg said. “But the positive thing is that all NATO allies and Russia are sitting at the same table.”
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According to Stoltenberg, both sides “expressed the need for dialogue and to consider the schedule of further meetings”. He said the Allies had agreed to hold a series of talks with Moscow on various strategic issues.
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“Russia was not in a position to agree to the proposal. They did not reject it, and Russian officials explained that they needed time to return to NATO with a response,” Stoltenberg said.
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He also warned that Russia would not have a veto over any decision by Ukraine to join NATO, and called for de-escalation of Russia’s concentrated forces on Ukraine’s border.
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“Ukraine is a sovereign state, Ukraine has the right to self-defense. Ukraine is not a threat to Russia,” Stoltenberg said. “It is Russia that is the aggressor. It is Russia that has used force and continues to use force against Ukraine. And then they gather about 100,000 soldiers, artillery, armored vehicles, drones, tens of thousands of ready-to-fight soldiers and use threatening rhetoric – so is a problem. “
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