Condoleezza Rice in Policymakers abroad


On War & Peace: 2008 ambassador: Ukraine in NATO is serious threat to Russia

The more widespread and familiar view in the West, particularly in the United States, is that Russia is and has always been an expansionist state. The opposing view argues that Russia's security concerns are in fact genuine, and that NATO expansion eastward is seen by Russians as directed against their country. Putin has been clear for many years that if continued, the expansion would likely be met with serious resistance by the Russians, even with military action.

Among others, Biden's CIA director, William J. Burns, has been warning about the provocative effect of NATO expansion. In 2008, Burns, then the American ambassador to Moscow, wrote to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice: "Ukrainian entry into NATO is the brightest of all redlines for the Russian elite (not just Putin). In more than two and a half years of conversations with key Russian players, I have yet to find anyone who views Ukraine in NATO as anything other than a direct challenge to Russian interests."

Source: TheConversation.com on Foreign Influences: "NATO expansion" Jan 28, 2022

The above quotations are from Foreign Influences on United States Policy.
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