Libyan crisis:Russia-NATO Council representatives meet in Sochi

Laaska News  July 4,2011
Discussing the situation in Libya with NATO partners can be very useful, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev declared at the meeting with the permanent representatives of the Russia-NATO Council in Sochi on the Black Sea coast.

Photo: RIA Novosti

The president said that “we can find a way out of the Libyan crisis together.”

South African President Jacob Zuma, who arrived in Sochi to discuss the issues of the Libyan settlement, took part in the meeting. He told Dmitry Medvedev about the results of the recent African Union’s summit on Libya.

Russia and South Africa insist on stopping the bombings of that country by the NATO  Air Force. Both countries believe it is important for all the participants in the conflict to start talks.

 

Russia urges NATO to focus on common threats

Russia has urged NATO to concentrate on deterring common threats, rather than on reciprocal containment.

This came in a statement by the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov during the ongoing meeting of the Russia-NATO Council in Sochi.

Some of the common threats we are facing, Lavrov said, are terrorism, the spread of weapons of mass destruction, and drug trafficking.

Sergei Lavrov voiced hope that the current meeting would reiterate the parties’ policy of strategic partnership, adopted by the Lisbon summit.

The ongoing Sochi meeting is attended by the Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen.

The meeting agenda features the creation of a common ABM system for Europe, the situation in Libya and other crisis-stricken regions.  

 ABM cooperation – litmus paper of Russia-West trust – Rogozin

Cooperation in the field of ABM is a litmus paper of trust between Russia and the West, says the Russian Ambassador to NATO Dmitry Rogozin in an interview with the ITAR-TASS news agency, in the run-up to a Russia-NATO Council meeting in Sochi.

Rogozin said that an alternative to ABM cooperation would be a new arms race that would cost one and all, namely Russia, the United States and Europe a pretty penny.

The Russia-NATO Council off-site meeting will focus on cooperation in building a common ABM system and the situation in Libya.

 NATO interested in working with Russia to improve Europe’s security

NATO is interested in working jointly with Russia to improve security in Europe and the world. This statement was made by NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, in an interview published today by the “Rossiyskaya Gazeta”.

The Secretary General said that if NATO and Russia succeed in implementing strategic partnership, it will be the beginning of a long way towards building up trust. Rasmussen once again assured that the alliance does not pose a threat to Russia. Earlier, a Kremlin source said that NATO countries were blocking the start of negotiations on a new regime for conventional arms control in Europe.

Moscow believes that politicization of this process makes it impossible to launch serious negotiations on a new CFE Treaty. This issue may come up for discussion at today’s meeting of the Russia-NATO joint Council in Sochi.

 

VOR.

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