Atlantic Community:Global Must Read Article "Five Reasons Why Russia Could Join NATO "

Alexander Kramarenko, Russian Foreign Ministry | December 13, 2010

1: Russia has civilian and democratic control over its army. ++ 2: Russia’s envoy to NATO is a staunch champion of a strengthened relationship with NATO. ++ 3: Russia's membership of NATO would not be a threat to China. ++ 4: The Collective Security Treaty Organization is not a mirror image of NATO. ++ 5: Russia's ambitions are reasonable - the end of the Cold War abolished the "status of superpower". ++ "Russia will never knock at the alliance’s door, but if NATO invites Russia to join, it will be difficult to decline."

I like this Article! What's this?

Comments

Thu, Jan 13th 2011, 13:10

Wieslaw Oleksy, University of Lodz, Poland

I like this comment! What's this?

I am afraid that the 5 reasons for Russia to join NATO are partly based on wrong premises. Here are just 2 of them: 1) Russia's claimed "civillian and democratic control over its army" is worth as much as Russia's independent courts, which was recently demonstrated during Mikhail Khodorkovsky's trial. 2) Russia has repeatedly used "energy threat" against its neighbours, let alone the attack on Georgia, and such behavior is very distantly related to accepted international standards of decent political relations. Finally, I hardly believe Russia is ready to go through the process that all new NATO members had to go through before becoming members and I see no reason why Russia be granted a special status and bypass all these regulations that other memebers follow and accept.