“From the German Foreign Ministry’s point of view, it’s good that this meeting took place. If you’re asking me about concrete expectations, then Berlin’s expectations are not tied to what happens after one round of negotiations with Russia…that all of the topics will be swept aside, taken from the agenda, and announced with solutions,” Schaefer said, adding that all difficult issues are possible to solve “by being in dialogue.”
The NATO-Russia Council was created in 2002 as a mechanism for consultations and cooperation between NATO member states and Russia on a wide range of security issues.
The format was suspended in 2014 amid stained relations over the Ukrainian crisis, as the alliance accused Moscow of the involvement in the conflict.
Russia has repeatedly dismissed the allegations of meddling in Ukrainian affairs and stressed that NATO's military expansion and increased presence near Russian borders undermines regional security.
