Interfax: Russian senator hails NATO’s changing philosophy as “new and important”

(Interfax – Moscow, November 12, 2013) NATO is changing its philosophy – the alliance is turning from an organization for ensuring defence of its members into an organization ensuring their security, Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs and Security Policy Thrasyvoulos Terry Stamatopoulos has said at a meeting with head of the Federation Council’s international committee Mikhail Margelov.

“This is new and important as it opens up opportunities for more active cooperation of Russia and NATO,” Margelov told journalists following the meeting.

He said Terry Stamatopoulos had proposed thinking about strengthening joint analytical work and planning joint actions. “This is a rational proposal. It is absolutely not necessary that only joint military operations should be evidence of our mutual trust. Work on prevention f terror attacks and international conflicts is no less important today,” the parliamentarian said.

According to the senator, a lot is being done today to add meaning to cooperation between Russia and NATO. There is Afghanistan, where measures are being taken to prevent drug and arms trafficking. There is a joint fight against piracy off Somali coast, Margelov said.

There is also the Sahel, a zone which has belonged to “no-one” since the Libyan crisis, which is full of weapons and armed people free from jurisdiction of whoever, Margelov said. The drug trafficking route crosses the Sahel, a terrorist threat to Africa and Europe is spreading from there.

In Margelov’s view, it is certainly positive that the Federation Council actively cooperates with NATO’s Parliamentary Assembly, with other NATO structures. Russian lawmakers act as a bridge between the Russian political elite and this biggest international organization, which Russia is not member of but which it actively cooperates with, the senator said.