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Russia slams NATO demonstration of support for Ukraine

Tuesday, 12 July 2016 6:39 AM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 12 July 2016 10:10 AM ]

Russia’s Permanent Representative to NATO Alexander Grushko ©AFP

Russia has warned the Western military alliance for supporting Ukraine's military operations in the country's east where it faces a pro-independence insurgency.

The warning by Russia's permanent representative to NATO Alexander Grushko on Monday came as the alliance used a two-day summit in Warsaw, Poland, last week to support Ukrainian military action.

“Regrettably, NATO is using the format of summits and other meetings with Ukraine in order to demonstrate its support. This is a dangerous trend, and a counterproductive one, it contradicts the interests of European security,” Grushko said.

Grushko also said Russia is alarmed by the participation of NATO-trained troops in Ukrainian military operation in the restive east, saying it would deteriorate the already tense situation there.

“Many NATO countries are pursuing fairly serious assistance programs, primarily with their instructors training the armed forces of Ukraine," he said.
"We are concerned that these trained units are then redeployed to the contact line and participate in shelling. This is a dangerous trend,” Grushko added.

NATO has stepped up its military buildup near Russia’s borders since it suspended all ties with Moscow in April 2014 after Crimean Peninsula seceded from Ukraine and joined Russia following a referendum.

Last week, the Western military alliance decided to deploy 4,000 soldiers to defend its eastern border from what it calls Russian threats.

‘Hard line against Russia must continue’

On the sidelines of the Warsaw summit, European leaders said NATO decision to deploy troops to Poland and the Baltic countries is a necessary move to boost security against Russia.

(From right) NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko, UK Defense Secretary Michael Fallon and US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter attend a working session at a NATO summit in Poland July 9, 2016. ©Reuters

Finland's Foreign Minister Timo Soini said his country’s border “was vulnerable” and described Russia as a “big issue” threatening his country’s security.

Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite also defended the deployment, saying it was not about taking “a harder line against Russia, it’s a realistic line securing the eastern flank of NATO, including our region.”

Russia has slammed NATO’s continued focus on the “non-existent” threat from Moscow, saying such an approach runs “contrary to the objective interests of maintaining peace and stability in Europe.”

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