MOSCOW, 8 June (BelTA) – NATO is looking for grounds to secure its foothold in Eastern Europe, Deputy Director of the Institute for Strategic Studies and Forecasts of the Peoples' Friendship University of Russia Pavel Feldman told BelTA commenting on the recent statement by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg who said that the alliance is seriously concerned about greater cooperation between Belarus and Russia.
“This suggests that NATO perceives Russia and Belarus as strategic adversaries, and that this way NATO is looking for reasons to strengthen its own positions on the borders of Eastern Europe. We should expect military drills, additional investment into the defense sector on the part of the United States and the European Union. It is noteworthy that today primarily the Baltic states and Eastern European countries, not Germany or France, set the tone in NATO. The former have always tried to attract the attention of their stronger patrons, primarily Washington. Well, they are whipping up fears, craving for attention, successfully performing their tasks, because their main function is to contain Russia, China, Belarus - those countries that are trying to pursue their sovereign policy and refuse to knuckle under to Washington,” the analyst said.
Pavel Feldman is sure: NATO has always sought to prevent stronger ties between the three historically fraternal nations - Russia, Belarus and Ukraine. “They successfully pulled Ukraine out of this strategic post-Soviet alliance and space, they wanted to do the same with Belarus too,” he noted. “But, it has appeared that at this moment of historical trials, Belarusian people opted for closer ties with Russia. They should respect this choice and understand that every action causes reaction and that neither Russia nor Belarus likes this information, economic and political aggression. Being put under such a pressure, our countries are forced to respond. NATO should not have helped rock the boat in Belarus, they should not have put President Aleksandr Lukashenko in such a difficult situation. NATO members – the USA, Poland, the Baltic states – should not have helped stage a color revolution in Belarus. Had it not been for this, Minsk could have probably carried on with a multi-pronged foreign policy it had pursued before. However, the fact is that the NATO countries themselves did not leave Belarus a choice. Now let them blame themselves for it,” the expert said.
Answering the question whether this statement by the NATO secretary general is setting the tone for the upcoming talks between the presidents of Russia and the United States, Pavel Feldman said: “I would not link these two things, because now in the run-up to this summit, the rhetoric of the United States sounds surprisingly peaceful. They do not want to ruin the negotiating positions for their own president, after all, now the Democrats dominate both the Senate and the Congress, they call the shots in the government. They have adopted a wait-and-see approach and are even acting nice towards us [Russia] saying that the United States and Russia should reconcile and cooperate more effectively in the future. One gets the feeling that they dropped a stick to hand out a carrot. However, we know the value of American promises and must be extremely vigilant. NATO has its own interests, it is a huge military machine that requires constant material subsidies. If you look at its efficiency, you will immediately question the usefulness of these expenses. Well, in Soviet times, during the Cold War, when two different political and economic systems competed, these expenses on their part were more or less justified. However, who are they going to fight with now? By and large, there is no one to fight with, since there can be no real military aggression towards the West either from Russia or from China. Yet, they need to find something to do, so they demonize Belarus, they will pretend that it is preparing some kind of aggression, maybe towards the Baltic states or towards Ukraine - as far as their imagination goes,” the expert concluded.
