It Is Complicated: Nuland Speaks on US, NATO Relations With Russia

© AFP 2023 / VANO SHLAMOV US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nuland gestures as she speaks during her press conference in Tbilisi on February 17, 2015
US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nuland gestures as she speaks during her press conference in Tbilisi on February 17, 2015 - Sputnik International
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US Assistant Secretary of State for Eurasian Affairs, Victoria Nuland adressed the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday, speaking about the US, NATO relations with Russia.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — US Assistant Secretary of State for Eurasian Affairs, Victoria Nuland accused Russia of rejecting US and NATO offers of cooperation while the alliance was expanding, in comments to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday.

"Through the various expansions of NATO, we sought also to deepen NATO’s own relationship with Russia."

Russia "did not take advantage of the opportunities NATO put before it for cooperation," Nuland said. Asked to comment on Russia’s military build-up to defend itself in the face of an expanding NATO, she stated, "I completely reject this narrative of grievance that it is somehow our fault."

US to Continue to Look for Areas of Aligning Interests With Russia

The United States continues to search for areas of cooperation with Russia, US Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland said.

"Even as we push back against Russian aggression and support neighbors under pressure, the United States will continue to look for areas where our interests and Moscow’s align."

The assistant secretary noted that the two countries can cooperate in the fields of "nonproliferation, nuclear and other WMD [weapon of mass destruction] security, preventing atrocities and humanitarian crises, and combating violent extremism and terrorism."

US 'Cautiously Optimistic' EU to Reimpose Anti-Russia Sanctions in June

The United States is hopeful but not certain that its European Union partners will reimpose sanctions on Russia when the issue comes to the European Council in June, Nuland also said.

"We are cautiously optimistic that the EU countries will again roll over sanctions at the end of June, because they see what we see, namely that Minsk [peace agreements] is far from being implemented in any of its components."

NATO Warsaw Summit to Address Alleged Russian Treaty Violations

The United States will use the upcoming NATO summit in Warsaw to address the alliance’s ability to deter Russia in the context of alleged arms control treaty violations, US Assistant Secretary of State for Eurasian Affairs, Victoria Nuland stated.

"We are also working intensively, and this is part of our package for the Warsaw Summit, to assure that NATO’s own deterrent, including its nuclear deterrent is updated and strong," Nuland said when asked about US responses to alleged treaty violations.

Nuland added that the United States is also working with allies to "bring pressure to bear on Russia with regard to the violations."

The United States has accused Russia of violations the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty, which prohibits the development, testing, or fielding of ground-based cruise missiles with a range of 300 to 3,400 miles.

Russia has rejected the accusations, and claimed that Washington’s Europe-based missile defense system violates the treaty.

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