A non-alignment Ukraine is of utmost importance to Russia as the country has the right to be treated equally in terms of security, said Russian President Vladimir Putin in an exclusive interview with China Media Group (CMG), Reuters reports.
During a mid-October interview with CMG in Moscow, Putin stressed that all countries should be treated equally when it comes to security interests, pointing out that the U.S. had repeatedly reneged on its promise that NATO would not expand eastward, which Russia has perceived as a security threat.
"We have said that one country's security should never be built at the expense of others. The security interests for all countries ought to be equal. Therefore, a non-alignment Ukraine is of utmost importance for us. Back in 1991, the then U.S. government told us that NATO would not expand eastward. However, NATO has expanded five times since then. Each time when we expressed our own concerns, they promised us NATO will not expand eastwards, however, all these promises turned out to be lip service," Putin said.
There was once an opportunity for a peaceful resolution to the Ukraine issue when all parties involved reached an agreement after extensive negotiations. However, the new U.S. administration disregarded the previously signed documents as soon as it assumed office, as if they had never existed, according to the Russian president.
"If each new government were to reverse (previous policies), and every time they need to kick off from the center circle, then how can they reach any agreement with others? It also applies to issues and topics of all kinds, including the one we are discussing now. Therefore a crucial aspect would be to ensure that all countries are assured with security on an equal footing. Russia has the same right in this regard as any other country. If we recognized NATO's expansion by using Ukraine as a threat, we would require them to understand our concern and listen to our opinions," said the Russian president.
NATO recognized Ukraine as its Enhanced Opportunities Partner in 2020. Also, it has been providing weapons and training for Ukrainian servicemen amid the on-going Russia-Ukraine conflict.
