Russia to set out security demands at ‘moment of truth’ NATO meeting

Talks continue in Brussels today

Russia US Security Talks Explainer (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service)

Russia is set to lay out its demands for security guarantees in Europe to NATO's 30 allies on Wednesday, following intense talks with the United States in Geneva that showed the two sides have major differences to bridge.

The Kremlin will be represented by Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko, who described the meeting as “a moment of truth” in Russia-Nato relations.

Wednesday's meeting is the second of three key engagements with Russia meant to defuse the growing threat posed by Moscow to neighboring Ukraine as thousands of troops mass along the border. On Monday, there were more than seven hours of talks in Geneva.

Russia has denied claims it is attempting to invade Ukraine, despite the troop movements. Nato diplomats insist that the western alliance is ready to negotiate with Moscow on increasing transparency around military drills and to avoid accidental clashes that could spark conflict, as well as arms control regarding missiles in Europe.

However, Nato allies have lamented many of Russia’s demands - labelling the December proposal, which included calls to scale back the alliance’s activities to 1990s era levels and promising to not take in new members, unacceptable.

“Let’s be clear: Russian actions have precipitated this crisis. We are committed to using diplomacy to de-escalate the situation,” US envoy to NATO Julianne Smith told reporters on Tuesday evening.

“We want to see... Russia pulling back its forces,” she said of the 100,000 troops stationed near Ukraine.

Meanwhile, Russia is hoping to get a pledge from the US that NATO will not extend into Ukraine.

“We see no real reason to be optimistic,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said. “Deputy foreign minister Sergei Ryabov said the first round of talks was positive because it was open, substantive and direct but our goal in these negotiations is not having talks, it’s the result that matters and nothing can be said about the result yet.”

US Ambassador to Nato Julianne Smith said all sides were committed to dialogue but “the allies are all united in messaging to the Russians that should they decide to further invade Ukraine, they would face massive consequences from NATO and also from the EU as well,” she said.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg is chairing Wednesday's talks with the alliance's 30 ambassadors and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mr Ryabkov. The allies are expected to voice concerns about what they say are covert and cyber attacks, as well as electoral interference, on the European Union and the United States