Russian FM: Security talks with US to start after holidays

MOSCOW — Talks betwixt Russia and the United States connected Moscow’s request for Western guarantees precluding NATO’s enlargement to Ukraine volition commencement instantly aft the caller twelvemonth vacation period, Russia’s apical diplomat announced Monday.

“It is with the U.S. that we volition transportation retired the main enactment of negotiations, which volition instrumentality spot instantly aft the caller twelvemonth holidays end,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said successful an interrogation Monday. The holidays successful Russia volition past for 10 days, done Jan. 9.

Earlier this month, Moscow submitted draught information documents demanding that NATO contradict rank to Ukraine and different erstwhile Soviet countries and rotation backmost the alliance’s subject deployments successful Central and Eastern Europe. Washington and its allies person refused to supply specified pledges, but said they are acceptable for the talks.

The demands, contained successful a projected Russia-U.S. information pact and a information statement betwixt Moscow and NATO, were drafted amid soaring tensions implicit a Russian unit buildup adjacent Ukraine that has stoked fears of a imaginable invasion. Russia has denied it has plans to onslaught its neighbour but pressed for ineligible guarantees that would regularisation retired NATO enlargement and weapons deployment there.

Lavrov said past week that, successful summation to talks with the U.S., Moscow volition commencement abstracted talks with NATO connected the issue, arsenic good arsenic abstracted negotiations nether the auspices of the Organization for Security and Cooperation successful Europe.

It is important that “our proposals aren’t coiled up successful endless discussions, which the West is celebrated for and which it knows however to do, that determination is simply a effect of each these diplomatic efforts,” Lavrov said Monday.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has decided to convene a gathering of the NATO-Russia Council connected Jan. 12, a NATO authoritative said Saturday, adding that the bloc was successful interaction with Russia astir the meeting.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov connected Monday confirmed the gathering volition instrumentality place, calling talks with NATO “important,” but said the details of the gathering are “in the works” and the day is inactive to beryllium confirmed.

Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin connected Monday told a briefing of subject attaches and representatives of overseas embassies that NATO’s “continued confrontational stance towards Russia” forced Moscow to request the information guarantees.

“The confederation has consistently ignored Russian interests and shied distant from an equitable treatment of existing problems,” Fomin said.

Lorne Cook contributed to this study from Brussels.