View of the Amsterdam waterfront. File photoPARIS, Jan 14The European Union and NATO are united in their position towards Russia — they rely on de-escalation and dialogue, the Dutch Defense Ministry said.
"Together with colleagues from the EU and NATO, they discussed Ukraine and Russia. The EU and NATO are unanimous in their position towards Russia: they rely on de-escalation and dialogue", the ministry said in a statement following an informal meeting of the heads of the Foreign and Defense Ministries of the EU countries in Brest, France.
The defense department of the Netherlands threatened Russia with «serious consequences» in the event of an escalation around Ukraine. On Wednesday, a meeting of the Russia-NATO Council was held in Brussels. The meeting followed the talks on security guarantees between Russia and the United States, which took place on January 9-10 in Geneva. Consultations were held in Vienna on Thursday at the OSCE venue on Russia's proposals for security guarantees. Western politicians have been claiming in recent months that Russia has amassed troops on the border with Ukraine. As Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov pointed out, the armed forces are moving within the territory of the state — this does not threaten anyone and should not worry anyone. Moscow stressed that statements about «Russian aggression» are being used as a pretext for building up NATO contingents in the border regions. Security Assurance Agreements between Russia and NATOInfographicView