NATO and EU
Publisher: Mikkel Vedby Rasmussen, Lars Bangert Struwe, Rune Hoffmann, Flemming Pradhan-Blach, Johannes Kidmose, Henrik Breitenbauch, Kristian Søby Kristensen and Ann-Sofie Dahl
Volume: 14 pages, pdf
Description:
With the passing of the belief that Russia is part of the West’s future, the view of Russian opposition to Western policies as a risk connected with a given policy also passes. Instead of being seen as a disruptive factor in a number of different areas, Russia is now seen as a risk in itself. ”Ukraine cannot be viewed in isolation,” concluded NATO’s Secretary-General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, in a speech at the Brookings Institution on 19 March 2014. Fogh Rasmussen continued:And this crisis is not just about Ukraine. We see what could be called 21st century revisionism. Attempts to turn back the clock. To draw new dividing lines on our maps. To monopolise markets. Subdue populations. Re-write, or simply rip up, the international rule book. And to use force to solve problems – rather than the international mechanisms that we have spent decades to build.
In this view, the consequences of the Russian intervention in Ukraine is that NATO must see Russia as part of its future rather than as part of its past. Where Albright talked about Russia’s outdated fear in 1997, the fear of the NATO countries has now been aroused. In his speech, Fogh Rasmussen emphasised that ”in times like this, when the security of the Euro-Atlantic area is challenged, the North Atlantic Alliance has not wavered. And it will not waver. For 65 years, we have been clear in our commitment to one another as Allies. And to the global security system within which NATO is rooted.”