TIME: What is NATO's purpose today? If Russia were invited to join would it do so?
PUTIN: I wouldn't call NATO a putrid corpse of the cold war, but it is a leftover of the past, indeed. Let's be frank. First, NATO was set up. Then, in response, the Warsaw Pact was established. There were two military-political blocs. While we're talking about the need to seek mutual understanding, we must now introduce new principles in international life. We have a multipolar world; it's as it should be. How can NATO efficiently fight terrorism? Did it stop the terrorists on 9/11? Where was NATO then? They were not there. They couldn't be there, because such threats can be addressed only if you have a trusting relationship with the actors that are capable of stopping this threat, including Russia. Russia has no intention of joining military-political blocs because that would be tantamount to restricting its sovereignty. But we want to have good relations, both with the U.S. and with other countries, including NATO countries. But today it's not possible to militarily corner others, to make other people obey. Formerly the U.S. was loaded with extra burdens and even perhaps compromised its position while trying to protect other countries from the Soviet Union. Now that context has changed. Therefore, internally this organization will need to reorganize around different principles. As regards the need to fight terrorism, drug trafficking, organized crime, poverty, which is a source of terrorism—all this requires a broader cooperation than the framework of a single military-political bloc.
No comments:
Post a Comment