Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during his press conference after his talks with President of USA Joe Biden at the US - Russia Summit 2021 at the La Grange Villa near the Geneva Lake on June 16, 2021 in Geneva, Switzerland. U.S.President Joe Biden is meeting Russian President Putin in Geneva for the first time as presidents, on Wednesday. (Getty)
to a periodic, focused, and meaningful dialogue with a Russia willing to engage on the basis of reciprocity in the NRC, with a view to avoiding misunderstanding, miscalculation, and unintended escalation, and to increase transparency and predictability. NRC meetings have helped us communicate clearly our positions, and we are ready for the next meeting of the NRC. We will continue to focus our dialogue with Russia on the critical issues we face. The conflict in and around Ukraine is, in current circumstances, the first topic on our agenda. NATO remains committed to making good use of the existing military lines of communication between both sides to promote predictability and transparency, and to reduce risks, and calls on Russia to do so as well. We continue to aspire to a constructive relationship with Russia when its actions make that possible.” For years now these summits yield excellent summaries of Russia’s wrongdoings and document an increasing aggressive foreign policy of Vladimir Putin’s regime. The “calls” remain the same – NATO allies call on Russia to stop and reverse its aggressive policies. For years now the NATO-Russia council remains defunct, and the list of Moscow’s offenses grows with every communique. The Alliance has experienced major setbacks over the recent years – the Trump administration’s assaults and continued questioning of the purpose and viability of NATO deepened the previously existing identity crisis within this vast organization. If President Biden’s leadership implies the return of confidence and unity within NATO, that still cannot happen overnight. In the mean-
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For years now these summits yield excellent summaries of Russia’s wrongdoings and document an increasing aggressive foreign policy of Vladimir Putin’s regime. time, NATO’s eastern members and partners are losing precious time as with every year Russia’s hold on the Black Sea region deepens and its hunger for dominance over the Baltic Sea region grows more insatiable. NATO has not changed its language towards Russia, and has done nothing to enhance its policy toolkit to actually influence Moscow. Vladimir Putin, in return, uses this language to justify his decisions to keep enhancing Moscow’s increasingly militaristic, aggressive foreign policy – especially in the Black Sea and the Baltic Sea regions, in the name of deterrence. Maia Otarashvili is a Research Fellow and Deputy Director of the Eurasia Program. Maia also serves as the Deputy Director of Research at FPRI. Her research interests include geopolitics and security of the Black Sea-Caucasus region, Russian foreign policy, and the post-Soviet “frozen” conflicts.