DISINFO: There is plenty of evidence proving NATO made promises not to expand Eastward
SUMMARY
There is a record of [James] Baker talking to the Soviet leadership, and there is plenty of other evidence to suggest that NATO has promised that they will not even leave West German territory after German reunification.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about NATO enlargement.
This claim has been debunked numerous times. NATO did not promise not to expand into eastern and central Europe back in 1990, which was confirmed by the former president of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev. Back in 2014, Gorbachev said that “The topic of ‘NATO expansion was not discussed at all, and it wasn’t brought up in those years. I say this with full responsibility”.
These so-called verbal agreements are a fiction. NATO members never made any political or legally binding commitments not to extend the alliance beyond the borders of reunified Germany.
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.
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