Russia Urges NATO Chief To Stop “Aggressive Rhetoric”
BRUSSELS, Sept 17 (KUNA) — Relations between the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and Russia continue to deteriorate with an escalation of war of words between the two sides.
Russia’s ambassador to NATO, Dmitry Rogozin, criticized today the visit by NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer to Georgia and the statements he made there.
Rogozin told a press conference Wednesday that the visit by Scheffer who led a delegation of ambassadors from all 26-alliance members for a two-day visit to Georgia on Monday and Tuesday was “totally out of place.” “NATO is trying to demonstrate its muscle. Everybody should be taking steps to restrain the conflict,” said the Russian diplomat and condemned the alliance for “political and military sponsor of an aggression.” The first meeting of the NATO-Georgia Commission was held in Tbilisi on Monday, where the alliance reaffirmed support for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and repeated its condemnation of the Russian decision to recognize the independence of the Georgian breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
In a speech at Tbilisi State University on Tuesday, the NATO chief said Russian tanks and troops could not block Georgia from joining NATO.
“We call on the NATO secretary-general to abstain from the rhetoric of aggression. Russia not only has tanks but cannons and planes,” snapped Rogozin.
“The language of threats and double standards is not the means to achieve security,” he said and called on the West to stop calling Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili as a “democratically-elected leader.” He underlined that EU monitors will not be allowed in Abkhazia and South Ossetia and noted that Russia has sent 3800 troops to each of the two breakaway regions following a request as he said by the “two new democracies.
” The EU is to dispatch 200 peace observers by October 1, who will be initially posted at the regions adjacent to Abkhazia and South Ossetia but Brussels says at a later stage they will be deployed in all the internationally recognized territory of Georgia.
Responding to a question on Russia-Iran ties, Rogozin said the US had been preparing to use Georgian territory to launch a military strike against the Islamic Republic.
He said it was important the Iran fulfills and implements the non-proliferation treaty and cooperates for the peaceful use of nuclear energy.
Commenting on recent US military attacks inside Pakistani territory against alleged Taliban camps, Rogozin said “this is an unprecedented violation of sovereignty of Pakistan” and condemned the US for invading other countries like Iraq.
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