MOSCOW (Sputnik) — NATO military buildup near Russian borders is an attempt to provoke Russia, Moscow will thoroughly analyze current NATO deployment plans to conclude whether they violate the Russia-NATO Founding Act, a source in the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Thursday.
"NATO military buildup near the Russian borders is undoubtedly an attempt to provoke Russia into taking counter-measures," the source told RIA Novosti on condition of anonymity.
"It is important for us to analyze whether the Americans with their NATO allies are violating the provisions of the Founding Act," the source said.
"It's not Russia that's approaching someone's borders. It's Nato's military infastructure that is approaching the borders of Russia."
— Aly-Khan Satchu (@alykhansatchu) June 18, 2015
The official added that Russia had repeatedly stated that "the rotational deployment of NATO forces is no different from the permanent placement."
Earlier in the day, a US Army spokesman told Sputnik that the deployment of US military hardware, including tanks and armored vehicles, in Eastern Europe does not violate the alliance’s agreement with Russia as it is a "prepositioning" of equipment for training and exercises.
Neither #Russia nor the #US are "determined to have a conflict with each other in terms of their leadership," despite "hotheads and fanatics", who are seeking to increase tensions. #NATO #Putin #Obama
Posted by Sputnik on Wednesday, June 17, 2015
On Wednesday, former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Adm. James Stavridis told Sputnik that the preposition is designed to reassure the NATO members of the US commitment to their security amid concerns over alleged Russian aggression.
The Baltic states of Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia, as well as Poland, Romania and Bulgaria, have agreed to host US military hardware.
