DISINFO: NATO is waging a hybrid war against Russia on the territory of Ukraine
SUMMARY
[...t]he [NATO] line pursued was to expand the Washington-led geopolitical space in Europe, adding more and more members to the alliance and pushing it towards Eastern Europe. NATO has repeatedly used military force to continue its expansion and achieve its objectives. Today, NATO is waging a hybrid war against Russia on the territory of Ukraine.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about NATO enlargement, which aims to justify Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine as an act of self-defence.
Russia and President Putin are responsible for the war in Ukraine. It was Putin’s personal decision to invade Ukraine and start the largest military conflict in Europe since WWII. See our 6-volume series of debunks of Putin 'What He Said and What it Really Means – Vol. 6.
Central and Eastern European countries began seeking NATO membership in the early 1990s. NATO actively sought to create a cooperative environment that was conducive to enlargement while simultaneously building special relations with Russia.
Furthermore, the claim about NATO expansion misrepresents the process of NATO enlargement. NATO does not expand, but considers the applications of candidate countries that want to join exercising their free will to decide alliance affiliation. NATO enlargement is not directed against Russia. See more disinformation about NATO and Ukraine here.
NATO is a defensive alliance with primary aims to maintain peace and safeguard the independence, security and territorial integrity of its members. NATO constitutes a system of collective defence whereby its member states agree to mutual defence in response to an attack by any external party. NATO's official policy is that "the Alliance does not seek confrontation and poses no threat to Russia."
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