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http://www.russiajournal.ru/news/rj_news.shtml?nd=1997 The Russia Journal April 19, 2002 Ivanov opposes NATO eastward expansion -But despite the prospect of a new, closer relationship, NATO's interest in welcoming more former Soviet republics as members continues to irritate the Kremlin. The three Baltic countries of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are expected to win coveted invitations to join the U.S.-led alliance this year, and U.S. President George W. Bush said last week that he envisions an alliance stretching "from the Baltic to the Black Sea." MOSCOW (Associated Press) - Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov reiterated on Thursday the Kremlin's opposition to the eastward expansion of NATO, saying it would lead the alliance in the wrong direction. "A mechanical expansion of the North Atlantic alliance will not help solve the problems facing the world community today," Ivanov said, according to ITAR-Tass news agency. "Therefore we suggest a new formula for solving such problems - the establishment of the Russian-NATO twenty," ITAR-Tass quoted Ivanov as saying while fielding questions from readers of the daily Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper. Ivanov was referring to a new Russia-NATO council that is close to be agreed between the former Cold War foes. Under the plan, Russia would sit alongside the 19 NATO member nations to cooperate in tackling terrorism and the spread of nuclear, biological and chemical weapons. Russia and NATO are expected to wrap up the agreement during a May 14-15 meeting in Reykjavik, Iceland. But despite the prospect of a new, closer relationship, NATO's interest in welcoming more former Soviet republics as members continues to irritate the Kremlin. The three Baltic countries of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are expected to win coveted invitations to join the U.S.-led alliance this year, and U.S. President George W. Bush said last week that he envisions an alliance stretching "from the Baltic to the Black Sea." Ivanov was quoted by ITAR-Tass as saying Friday that the expansion eastward was "a road in the wrong direction." Meanwhile, Ivanov said that Russia is eager to continue building its partnership with the United States, according to ITAR-Tass. "The United States is a partner with which Russia wants to solve problems such as world security and stability," he said. __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Yahoo! Tax Center - online filing with TurboTax http://taxes.yahoo.com/ --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: [email protected] EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9617B Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
