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US Seeks To Reassure Russia Over New Romanian Military Bases
Brussels (AFP) Dec 07, 2005 The US government Wednesday sought to reassure Russia about the new agreement for American military bases in Romania after its former Cold War enemy questioned the future of the treaty limiting conventional armed forces in Europe. "The agreement signed yesterday (Tuesday) is not only completely consistent with CFE obligations, it is also consistent with every declaration and every understanding that NATO has ever made with Russia," said a US official travelling with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. "It is well within that margin of comprehension, so there is no basis for Russia to be concerned." Rice signed on Tuesday an historic agreement with Romania to establish permanent US military bases in that country, the first-ever in a former Warsaw Pact nation. However the announcement caused concern in Moscow with Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov saying on Wednesday that "the expansion of NATO and US installations up to Russia's borders calls into question the future of the CFE (Conventional Armed Forces in Europe) treaty". "Russia is currently fulfilling all its obligations under the treaty. But if we see that the other countries are ignoring it, we draw conclusions from that," Ivanov said on Russian public television. The 1990 CFE treaty was aimed at limiting the deployment of conventional arms by NATO and the Warsaw Pact nations. After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, it was remodelled in 1999. The threats of Russian withdrawal from the CFE treaty comes amid a meeting between foreign ministers of NATO countries and their Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in Brussels. The centre for the US's so-called Eastern European Task Force (EETAF) will be at the air base near Constanta on the Romanian Black Sea coast, said a State Department official who asked not to be named. The expected 1,500-strong US force will also use three other sites in Romania -- Smardan training range, Babadag training area and Cincu training range. Source: Agence France-Presse Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Related Links SpaceDaily Search SpaceDaily Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express
The EUs Grim Year
Washington (UPI) Jan 05, 2006After a grim year of slow growth, riots and terror attacks from its Muslim immigrant underclass, rows over its budget and two thumping rejections by Dutch and French voters of its planned new constitution, the European Union's leaders can hardly wait for 2005 to be over to make a fresh start in the New Year. |
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