MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Anatoly Antonov spoke positively about "cautious" signals from Estonia and Lithuania that they intended to give their opinion on Moscow’s initiative soon.
"[Authorities] in the capitals of Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania and Poland keep talking about a ‘rising threat’ from Russia…We decided to invite colleagues from these countries to Moscow…Unfortunately, we have not received their official responses yet," Anatoly Antonov told the Russian newspaper, Nezavisimaya Gazeta.
3 September 2016, 08:41 GMT
"We feel positive about cautious official messages from Estonian and Lithuanian defense ministries that they plan to prepare responses to our proposal," he noted. "There has been no official reply from Stockholm yet," he added.
Antonov said earlier that Russia wanted to consult the five neighbors plus Finland on how to avoid undesirable incidents in air and at sea.
Since 2014, NATO has been building up its military presence in eastern European countries bordering Russia, using Moscow's alleged interference in Ukraine's internal conflict as a pretext for the move. Moscow has repeatedly denied the claims and warned the alliance that its military buildup along Russia’s borders is provocative and could threaten regional and global stability.
