Russia demands NATO forces be pulled back to 1997 borders
Ahead of a visit by US envoys to Moscow, Russia has put forward demands similar to its December 2021 ultimatum, The New York Times reports. They include moving NATO military infrastructure back to its 1997 positions.
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Russia has again demanded that NATO forces be withdrawn to their 1997 borders in closed-door talks with representatives of US President Donald Trump this week, The New York Times reports. The information emerged two days before Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are due to visit the Kremlin. The demands matter because they essentially repeat the ultimatum Moscow issued before Russia's renewed invasion of Ukraine.
A document from closed talks
The demands are set out in a document dated November 10. A person involved in the talks gave it to the newspaper, and another informed source confirmed its authenticity.
According to the paper, the document differs little from the draft treaty Russia published in December 2021. That text called for all NATO military infrastructure to be moved back to where it stood before 1997, that is, outside the territory of the former Warsaw Pact states. Russia demanded that all provisions of the document be accepted without discussion.
What has changed
The differences between the new document and the 2021 version concern only a few details. In 2021, Russia demanded that the United States not share its nuclear forces with European allies; a similar demand is now made of the two other NATO nuclear powers, Britain and France.
Moscow also insists that Western countries must not supply Ukraine with any military-related goods. The Kremlin is said to be ready to allow Ukraine to join the European Union, but only on condition that Kyiv does not take part in the bloc's defence system.
