Bucharest - NATO welcomed the 'positive spirit' demonstrated
by Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting in Bucharest on
Friday, pointing to a transport deal in Afghanistan as evidence of an
improvement in relations between the alliance and Moscow.
'There was no hiding of views, but the spirit was positive,' NATO
Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said after a NATO-Russia
Council (NRC) meeting in the Romanian capital.
Ahead of the NRC, the NATO chief had called on the Russian leader
to steer clear of 'unhelpful rhetoric' during the meeting.
And though he acknowledged that deep divisions remained, he
expressed satisfaction at the fact that Putin had helped produce
'constructive' talks in Bucharest.
'This morning I am not complaining about unhelpful rhetoric,' de
Hoop Scheffer said.
During the course of the meeting, NATO and Russia formalized a
transport agreement in support of the alliance's International
Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan.
The deal will allow non-lethal goods destined for ISAF to be
transported through Russian territory on their way to Afghanistan.
Only hours before the NRC opened, at least five people were killed
in two separate attacks by insurgents against ISAF convoys - the
latest in a long string of such incidents in Afghanistan.
The NATO-Russia Council (NRC) was established at a 2002 meeting in
Pratica di Mare, near Rome, as a means of fostering mutual
understanding.
But relations between NATO and Russia have progressively worsened
since, reaching one of their lowest post-Cold War points over the
past year.
Disagreements cover a variety of issues, including Kosovo and
NATO's willingness to extend its reach eastwards.
Putin on Friday reiterated his view that offering NATO membership
to Ukraine and Georgia would be seen as a threat.
On Thursday, the alliance's leaders postponed a decision on
whether to offer Membership Action Plans to the two former Soviet
republics, precisely because of European concerns that it would upset
Moscow.
And the Kremlin was less than pleased with Thursday's announcement
that the United States and the Czech Republic had reached an
agreement to site elements of a US anti-ballistic-missile system on
Czech soil.
The radar in the Czech Republic, which the US says is intended to
protect the West from rogue states such as Iran, will be part of any
future NATO missile defence system.
The Kremlin objects to the US plan, arguing that it poses a threat
to its own security and deterrent capability, and has suspended its
participation in the Treaty on Conventional Forces in Europe (CFE) in
response.
Speaking Friday, de Hoop Scheffer acknowledged that 'no stunning
breakthroughs' had been achieved in Bucharest, but underlined the
importance of holding such regular meetings with Russia.
'We use the NRC to discuss items we agree on ... but even more
importantly, we use the NRC on the items we do not agree on, be it
enlargement of NATO, be it the adapted CFE treaty, be it Kosovo,' he
said.
Friday's brief NRC - lasting only about one hour - took place in
Bucharest's Palace of the Parliament, a monstrous 330,000-square-
metre mansion built during the regime of former communist dictator
Nicolae Ceausescu.
It was the first to be attended by Putin since its creation and
the last by his US counterpart, George W Bush.
The two leaders were due to meet again in the Black Sea resort of
Sochi over the weekend.
USA
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