RUSSIAN PRESIDENT Dmitry Medvedev has agreed to attend next month’s Nato summit, but indicated Moscow remained wary about the alliance’s anti-missile defence plans.
Speaking after meeting French president Nicolas Sarkozy and German chancellor Angela Merkel in the resort town of Deauville yesterday, Mr Medvedev said his attendance at the Lisbon summit “will further the search for necessary compromises and the development of dialogue” between his country and Nato.
The Kremlin views the Atlantic alliance with suspicion, and had sought further assurances on the organisation’s proposed anti-missile defence system before accepting the Lisbon invitation. While Nato says the plan is aimed against a missile threat from Iran, Moscow is concerned it could also be used to counter Russia’s long-range nuclear arsenal, weakening its deterrent and leaving it vulnerable.
Mr Medvedev signalled that Russia could be open to co-operating under certain conditions. “We are evaluating the idea, but I think that Nato itself needs to understand in what form it sees Russia participating in this system – what it will bring, how agreement can be reached, and how to proceed further,” he said.
Dr Merkel said she was “very happy” that Mr Medvedev would attend the Lisbon summit, and was pleased “there is a basic willingness to participate”. The tripartite Deauville summit – the first such gathering since 2006 – was described by French officials as a “brainstorming” session in advance of the Nato summit and France’s chairmanship of the G8 and G20 next year. Paris and Berlin saw it as an opportunity to consolidate their improving ties with Moscow and to draw it deeper into what the Élysée Palace calls “a common economic, human and security space” between Europe and Russia.
While security dominated the leaders’ discussions, the Middle East, Iran and monetary governance were also raised. All three countries are anxious to play a more prominent role in attempts to broker a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians, while they noted a “convergence of views” on the need to deal with Iran’s nuclear programme by combining sanctions with a willingness to find a negotiated solution.
On the G20, Mr Medvedev and Dr Merkel lent their support to France’s hopes of reforming the global monetary system when it takes over the chairmanship of the group next year. “We are seeing that the question of currencies and exchange is central,” Dr Merkel said.
As expected, there were no breakthroughs on Russia’s hope of easing visa restrictions for its citizens travelling in the European Union.
Mr Sarkozy and Dr Merkel acknowledged the issue was important to Moscow, but insisted that it should be dealt with “step by step” in accordance with a scheme laid down by Brussels. Any agreement would give Russians visa-free access to the 27 member states, including former Soviet republics with which Moscow has strained relations.
For its part, the EU wants clearer access to Russian gas and energy deals for its investors and companies circumspect about alliance anti-missile defence plans.