A new treaty on European security should ban the military alliances from expanding to the detriment of other parties to the treaty. Russia’s Prime Minister Vladimir Putin made the respective statement in St. Petersburg, when addressing the International Conference on Humanitarian Law, Kommersant reported.
According to Putin, this legally binding document is to guarantee really equal security, including based on the adherence of the NATO nations to three “No” provisions. To begin with, the safety of no nation should be secured at the expense of other nation’s safety. Secondly, no actions (within any military coalitions or alliances) should be taken if they weaken unity of common security area. Thirdly, no development or expansion of any military alliances should be to the detriment of other parties to the treaty.
When mentioning the last provision, Russia’s prime minister was evidently referring to the eastward expansion of NATO, when Ukraine and Georgia are striving for membership in the alliance.
The U.S. plans to station components of the missile defense shield in Eastern Europe could be the example of attempts of certain nations to secure their safety at the expense of others. The project is aimed at strategic potential of Russia, Putin emphasized, adding that the winner from these actions of the United States is yet unknown but Europe will lose for sure.
If the new administration of the United States abandons the intention to deploy missile defense components in Poland and the Czech Republic, the problem of Russia’s response will be no longer relevant, Putin made clear.
