Russia and some Nato member states, including the US, are at odds over the Ukraine crisis. Ros Atkins examines the dynamics at play between Russia and Nato.
This is an unofficial transcript meant for reference. Accuracy is not guaranteed.
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each week on the BBC world service. I look at one of the biggest issues in the news this time it's nato and the ukraine crisis,
we have made it very clear: we're ready to continue talks in good faith with russia, but give russia makes
Joyce to further invade ukraine. We are jointly ready at all of nato is ready as you as president Joe Biden, is well aware. There are around two hundred and twenty five thousand russian troops close to Ukraine's border. The economist describes this is the biggest concentration of fire power in europe since the cold war and know tat. Joe Biden refers to NATO being ready. It's a western military allow,
since, and russia is focused on it to the public. The nato member countries continue to send a large amount of modern weapons to ukraine. Vladimir Putin is right. It's true that recent nato members have sent military hardware to ukraine. It's also true: NATO's bolstering its defences in eastern europe.
For example, thousands of us soldiers have been moved into poland and romania.
Russia's concern about nato in eastern europe is not new. This is a long standing issue,
and russia now has demands to it once a promise that ukraine
never join nato it once nato to withdraw its military deployment of recent years. From eastern europe and this,
why to understand the ukraine crisis we need to.
The stand, nato both its
ambitions and why russia sees them as a threat. At last, a house on thursday, the foreign ministers of the twelve atlantic treaty nations held their final meeting in public. Let's go back to the start. Nato's full name is the north atlantic treaty organisation. It began as an alliance of twelve countries after the second world war in nineteen, forty, nine, the? U S, canada, the uk and france were among its members and nato's goal was to secure peace in europe to promote cooperation among its members and to guard their freedom. No those words secure
odd nato sees its job to protect as a defender and in time. It would expand, for example, after the collapse of the soviet union in ninety ninety one, a number of new post soviet nations would ask to join and now in twenty twenty two. It has thirty members, and this is how the NATO secretary general, yet stolen burg describes the alliance together. We are fifty percent of the world's smith oldwick.
Than the economic might so as not to stand together in a tone of american europe. We are all too and NATO's commitment to stand together essential to how it works. You may have heard of its article five. This establishes the principle that
one member, is attacked. All members consider it an attack. His Joe Biden referencing how article five was triggered when Al Qaeda attacked america in two thousand and one it happened, and nine eleven we were attacked immediately. Nato supported us, NATO went to. We got a lot. Nato was part of the process. Nato went with the americans to afghanistan after those attacks, and that was no surprise. America is the biggest control
certain nato's budget. It has the biggest military, it's the dominant member and as such, nato expansion is seen by russia and by china as an extension of american power. As the winter olympics got under way in beijing, president putin of russia with the star guest earlier this week, President Putin met china's president, she, the winter olympics opening ceremony in beijing together. The leaders issued a statement opposing the expansion of nato is the BBC's china, correspondent, robin bread, russia and china. Both said they oppose the enlargement of the alliance. Both also concern
bout. U s, plans to deploy global missile defence systems. This concern has been growing it's connected to those new and nato members in eastern europe, but it's one country's relationship with NATO that has caused russia to begin this fast military build up and that ukraine is locrian of wood. If ukraine joining nato and tries to take back crimea by military means, european countries will autumn,
it may be drawn into a military conflict with russia. The president Putin, ukraine joining nato would change everything. Peaches refer to rush,
And ukrainians being one nation, he ordered the annexation of crimea from ukraine and twenty fourteen. He supported separatists in the east of ukraine to
ukraine at the very least, belongs in russia's sphere of influence but mikhail by
escape from the think tank. The german
she'll fund says the focus on the tens,
She'll ukrainian membership of NATO doesn't add up. No one is talking about
an immediate member,
of ukrainian nato. So what the russian side is,
saying that they are worried about, is just nonexistent. Now. Ukraine does
want to join nato, but that prospect is not imminent. The americans also
russia of exaggerating the prospect he's the secretary of state Anthony blinkin. We ve seen this gas lighting before one russian dated ukraine. Twenty fourteen. You claim that ukraine was the aggressor to justify pre planned military action.
though points at the map. It highlights how for NATO members poland survey
hungary and romania, or border ukraine, ukraine joining with complete a huge block of nato territory right on russia's doorstep and at once that option taken off the table, losing we hey statements from some nato countries that demand an increase in the military contingent on that territory. I mean some baltic states. How should we react? It's hardly possible that nato can dictate to us how and wax move our armed forces on russian territory. This is kremlin spokesperson made repass gulf.
Speaking in january after a meeting between nato and russia and to russia, NATO is an effort to constrain russian power better in mind. As we listen to Poland's national defense minister moreish boss, jack donaghy lips on metal, that this is the best method to deter a potential aggressor so of deterrence and solidarity, are the best response to moscow's aggressive policy aggressive to an aggressive attempt to rebuild the russian empire.
And this is really the heart of the matter. Russia sees nato's presence in eastern europe as an aggressive act by the west, especially by the. U s,
Nato sees itself as defensive at the summit
trees in eastern europe. Nato offers them protection. This is the stone
prime minister car of callous speaking to my colleague, Lucy hawking's, the fail safe and nato protected by nato and estonia
yes, we do. We have a nato strong allies who have kept the same law.
In the summer, and the meetings with the russia, which is very important to us than I think it has negatively surprise pressure that we have stayed so united. Maybe it
as perhaps it also surprise some nato members itself and twenty nineteen present mccrone said nato was brain dead. He argued it had lost its sense of purpose and direction, not everyone agreed, but as russia's troop build up,
this pace. So David wills of the german Marshall fund argues. Nato has renewed focus. Maybe Putin has also overestimated at hand. Is its also waken up the last. It's gotten nato to have purpose again
and to sort of strengthen cohesion within the alliance. Reading the diplomatic
prudence is notoriously difficult and nato russia relations, while we can be sure of though
Nato remains central to why Putin's ordered this military build up and its central to how the west is responding and two putin NATO's actions rob,
securing a world order with the. U s, not russia or china is dominance.
And so NATO finds itself in the middle of a global power struggle, and the stakes could not be higher. As shashank joshi of the economist points out, it will be costly, it would be difficult, it would be the biggest war in Europe we've seen at least since the balkan
was probably since world war to NATO emerged in the aftermath of that war. Now it's trying to avoid enough
all right, they're, ok, come on.
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Transcript generated on 2023-04-27.