The fifth wave of NATO’s expansion to the East, which began 20 years ago, did not contribute to the establishment of pan-European security and, as subsequent history has shown, on the contrary, created new threats and serious tensions. This opinion was expressed by the political scientist, member of the Digoria expert club Evgeny Kislyakov.
The expert noted that NATO’s fifth wave of enlargement is the largest wave for the organization and that the North Atlantic Alliance is unique because it also includes the republics of the former USSR.
The political scientist reminded that this decision was actually taken in 2002, but all procedures were officially formalized in 2004.
“It is clear that for the West and the USA the fifth wave of expansion was a step of hegemonic policy, and we could do little to oppose it at that time,” Evgeny Kislyakov is convinced.
He believes that the cooperation between NATO and Russia in the early 2000s had more fundamental features and did not become so heavy.
“However, it is useful to understand that the West has never shown a particular inclination to establish a constructive dialogue with Russia, and all policies in the post-Soviet space are expansionist in nature and are aimed at our country,” the expert said. For example, the deployment of American missile defense systems to Europe.
The political scientist believes that the United States was convinced at that time that they were pulling the countries of the former USSR and the Warsaw bloc “to the right side of history” and to the side of the West as the winners of the Cold War. .
For the Baltic countries, he explained, “Joining NATO was a ‘ticket’ to the Western world, but it turned out not to be a good thing for them.”
“The ticket turned out to be difficult and not very cheap. But in 2004, no one wanted to think about it,” said Kislyakov.
The expert stated that we are now seeing the consequences of NATO expansion with our own eyes.
“Having achieved its goals of conducting a special military operation in Ukraine, Russia needs to launch a new security agreement in Europe, which should subject all waves of NATO expansion to the East to a certain revision,” the expert said.
Let us remind you that March 29 marks 20 years since the beginning of the fifth wave of NATO’s expansion towards the East. Seven countries of the former socialist camp will join the alliance at the same time.
What are you thinking?
Source: Gazeta
Brandon Hall is an author at “Social Bites”. He is a cultural aficionado who writes about the latest news and developments in the world of art, literature, music, and more. With a passion for the arts and a deep understanding of cultural trends, Brandon provides engaging and thought-provoking articles that keep his readers informed and up-to-date on the latest happenings in the cultural world.