In an increasingly “turbulent and tense” global diplomatic climate, Russia needs to receive legally binding security guarantees from the US-led NATO military bloc, President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday.
In a warm congratulatory statement published for Diplomatic Worker’s Day, Putin also tasked employees of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the pursuit of comprehensive guarantees of Russia’s security from NATO.
The president noted the ever-growing tensions between Russia and the West, stating that “additional and persistent efforts” are required from his government “to ensure strategic stability and counter arising threats and challenges.”
“This especially includes our bid to receive comprehensive, legally binding national security guarantees from the US and its NATO allies,” the statement said.
The letter, directed by the Russian head of state to all the country’s diplomats, also praised the Foreign Ministry’s “glorious record of faithful service to the Motherland.”
Russian diplomacy has been tested in recent months, in a climate of rocky relations with the US and other NATO members. In December last year, the Russian Foreign Ministry published the drafts of two treaties, one with the US and one with NATO, with a long list of Moscow’s security demands. These included the end of NATO expansion to the east, the withdrawal of the alliance's weapons to the positions of 1997, and the non-deployment of strike weapons near Russian borders.
Last month, Moscow received replies from both Washington and Brussels. According to Russia, the responses ignored almost all of its demands regarding national security.
The US has repeatedly stated that it would be willing to do a deal with Russia, but it has dubbed some of the ideas from Moscow “non-starters,” noting that America would never agree to ban Ukraine from joining NATO, but would consider various reciprocal agreements on missiles and transparency of troop movements.
Speaking at the end of January, US State Department Spokesman Ned Price revealed that America would not make any concessions, but would agree to joint bilateral steps.
“They would need to be on a reciprocal basis, meaning that the Russians would also have to do something that would help improve our security – our security posture,” he said.