EU to engage with US, NATO on Russian proposal about European security

By Agnes Szucs

BRUSSELS (AA) - The EU will engage with both US and NATO to ensure its interests are represented in any possible discussion with Russia on European security, the bloc’s foreign policy chief said on Wednesday.

Josep Borrell’s remarks came as NATO offered to hold a meeting of the NATO-Russia Council after Moscow presented two draft agreements on security in Europe.

Terming NATO’s offer “an important step,” Borrell reiterated the EU’s support for Ukraine, and said that the bloc was committed to European security “based on the key principles of non-aggression and respect for national sovereignty and for territorial integrity.”

He accused Russia of contributing to the deterioration of the security situation in Europe by annexing Crimea and fueling conflicts in Eastern Ukraine, in the Georgian breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, and in the Transnistrian region, as well as by supporting the regime of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

He stressed that the EU believed in dialogue to overcome dispute but reminded that “any real discussion on security in Europe must build on and strengthen OSCE (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe) and UN commitments and obligations.”

Russia has recently amassed tens of thousands of troops near Ukraine’s border. The move has prompted concerns among NATO allies that Russia could be planning another military offensive against its ex-Soviet neighbor.

The US and its European allies are accusing Russia of trying to destabilize the country by providing military support to the separatist forces in Ukraine’s eastern regions.

According to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Moscow and Washington will hold first consultations in January.​​​​​​​