Belgium NATO strengthens its military presence in Eastern Europe, and the Kremlin describes the step as escalatory
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) announced in a statement Monday that its countries are preparing to put reserve forces on alert, and that they have sent ships and fighters to reinforce their defenses in Eastern Europe against Russian military activities on the borders of Ukraine.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said in a statement: “NATO will continue to take all necessary measures to protect and defend all members, in particular by strengthening the Eastern Alliance countries. We will always respond to any deterioration in our security environment, including by strengthening our defense collective".
The alliance referred to the decisions taken by Denmark in recent days to send a frigate and warplanes to the Baltic states, Spain's support for its naval deployment, and the Netherlands' preparation of "ships and land units on alert" for the rapid reaction force.
The statement also focused on a recent offer from France to send troops to Romania, noting that "the United States has also made it clear that it is considering increasing its military presence."
Cold War ghost
With tens of thousands of Russian troops massed on the Ukrainian border, tension between Moscow and the West is at its highest level since the Cold War, and there are real fears of a full-scale conflict in Eastern Europe. Moscow denies the accusations against it, while NATO members are calling for reinforcements.
"We have reached the stage where the continued Russian and Belarusian military build-up in Europe needs to be addressed, with appropriate NATO countermeasures," Latvian Foreign Minister Edgar Rinkevich wrote on Twitter. He added, "It is time to increase the presence of Allied forces in the eastern flank of the coalition as defense and deterrence measures."
Don't negotiate the 'basic principles'
The alliance is proposing further talks with Russia after the Kremlin issued a set of demands that would stop NATO from annexing Ukraine.
The alliance insists it will not negotiate its "fundamental principles", including defending all its nations and allowing allies to choose their own path.
The coalition reinforced its forces in the Baltic states after Russia's 2014 annexation of Crimea and is currently studying plans to deploy more forces in Romania and Bulgaria.
The Kremlin on Monday accused the United States and NATO of escalating tensions, after the military bloc announced that it would strengthen its defenses in eastern Europe in the wake of the Ukraine crisis.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Washington and NATO were escalating tensions with "advertising hysteria" and "concrete steps", noting that the risk of Ukrainian forces launching an offensive against pro-Russian separatists was "extremely high".