#23 - JRL 2009-229 - JRL Home
Russia-NATO relations enter new stage - Medvedev
MOSCOW, December 16 (RIA Novosti)-President Dmitry Medvedev said on Wednesday that Russia's relations with NATO are entering a new stage.
"Much depends on the level of Russia-NATO relations," Medvedev said at a meeting with NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen.
Rasmussen is on a three-day visit to Russia, which was expected to focus on Afghanistan and Russia's possible arms transportation assistance to the international operations there.
Medvedev expressed the hope that as a result of the visit by the NATO chief, "relations between Russia and NATO will become more reliable and productive."
Relations between the military bloc and Moscow have improved in recent months after being frozen in the wake of the August 2008 Russia-Georgia war. Rasmussen has been pushing for ties with Russia to be normalized since he took office in August 2009.
Medvedev said that during their meeting Russia and NATO could discuss all topical issues of interaction, including joint measures to fight terrorism and common threats.
Medvedev also said that the parties would be able to discuss Russia's initiative to draft a European security treaty.
In turn, Rasmussen said that strengthening relations between NATO and Russia was a priority for him in the post of the NATO chief.
"We may have our disagreements in some areas but this should not overshadow the fact that we have the same interests in many areas, because we face the same security threats," Rasmussen said.
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