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NATO chief seeks to convene meeting with Russia amid tensions

Tuesday, 04 January 2022 4:31 PM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 04 January 2022 5:16 PM ]

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg (photo by AFP)

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has scheduled a special meeting of the NATO-Russia Council (NRC) next week, as tensions boil between Moscow and the West over a range of issues, including Ukraine.

In a statement released on Tuesday, a NATO official said that the meeting of the council, a format used for dialog since 2002, would take place in Brussels on Jan. 12.

"Any dialogue with Russia would have to proceed on the basis of reciprocity, address NATO's concerns about Russia's actions... and take place in consultation with NATO's European partners," the official said.

The Western military alliance has been seeking a meeting of the NATO-Russia Council for months.

Maria Zakharova, Russia's Foreign Ministry spokesperson, confirmed that Russian officials would attend the upcoming meeting in Brussels. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov and other senior Russian officials are expected to attend the talks.

Addressing a meeting in Moscow late last month, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov pledged not to make any unilateral concessions to the US-led military alliance without taking the balance of interests into account.

Senior officials in Moscow have warned against the US-led alliance's eastward expansion.

Russia warns against NATO's eastward expansion, large-scale military confrontation

NATO is preparing itself for a large-scale armed confrontation with Moscow, says Russia’s deputy defense minister, warning against the US-led alliance’s eastward expansion.

The Russian delegation will also meet US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman on Jan. 10 in Geneva, where they will hold talks with the US on arms control and the situation in Ukraine.

Media reports also said on Tuesday that NATO foreign ministers were set to hold an emergency video-conference on Friday to discuss Russia's military activities in its own territory near Ukraine.

The US, an ally of Ukraine, has accused Russia of carrying out significant military movements along its border with Ukraine. Russia has denied the allegation, saying it is free to move its troops around within its own borders.

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