Russia slams US approval of Montenegro’s NATO accession

MOSCOW: Russia’s Foreign Ministry on Thursday called the approval by the US of Montenegro’s accession to NATO a “deeply mistaken” move that creates divisions in Europe.
The decision by US President Donald Trump to sign off on the accession by the Balkan country to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization on Tuesday “reflects the logic of confrontation on the European continent and creates new dividing lines,” the ministry said in a statement.
“We consider the course toward including Montenegro in NATO is deeply erroneous, goes fundamentally against the interests of people in this country and harms stability in the Balkans and in Europe as a whole,” it said.
It added that the accession was forced upon Montenegro through what it called “puppet NGOs” that work to “create the illusion of public support for the one-sided policy of the Montenegrin authorities.”
The population of Montenegro, on the Adriatic Sea, is mostly Orthodox Slavs and Moscow has long considered it to be in its sphere of influence.
The White House on Wednesday moved to accuse Moscow of being behind an attempted coup during Montenegro’s October elections, which saw a group of Serbian nationals jailed last month.
The country hopes to become a NATO member later this year, which would reinforce the bloc’s presence in the Balkans as Greece, Croatia and Albania are already members.
Meanwhile, former director of the CIA and former supreme commander of NATO will join other former high-ranking officials in the Romanian capital to discuss a wide range of issues from migration to terrorism.
The May 4-5 meeting organized by Romanian think tank Strategikon will also focus on populism and Britain’s decision to leave the European Union.
A statement sent to The Associated Press Thursday said there will be discussions on the need for officials to cooperate with the private sector and academics.
Former CIA director David Petraeus and retired U.S. Air Force Gen. Philip M. Breedlove, who oversaw sweeping changes at NATO to deal with a resurgent Russia and the threat of armed Islamic extremism in the Middle East and Africa, will also attend. Breedlove left the post in 2016.