Kommersant: Russia May Close Its Representation at NATO

Russia may close its representation at NATO in response to the expulsion of diplomats from Brussels. The source in Kommersant does not exclude such development of events. The publication underscores that military cooperation between Russia and the alliance was frozen at the initiative of our foreign partners after the Crimean referendum, and the Russia-NATO Council meetings have not been held for more than two years. Therefore, leaving even one person in a mission, tasked with addressing these issues in particular, "will be enough," said one of the interlocutors of the newspaper, life.ru reports. Recall that NATO decided to reduce the composition of the permanent mission of Russia to the alliance in Brussels from 20 to 10 employees. This step was taken in response to the alleged "hostile activity of Moscow in recent years." Alliance Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg explained that such a decision was made in connection with the activities of the Russian Federation and NATO intelligence information. The Russian Foreign Ministry called NATO's steps unceremonious and advised the alliance to deal with real problems rather than deterring Russia. Point