Russian diplomat says Moscow could conclude non-aggression pacts with NATO member states

Russia has declared its readiness to conclude bilateral non-aggression agreements with individual NATO countries and to provide them with additional individual security guarantees. This proposal was announced by Alexei Drobinin, director of the Foreign Policy Planning Department at the Russian Foreign Ministry, during an international forum on collective security in Moscow. According to UA.NEWS, such agreements could become part of the new Eurasian security architecture that Moscow is promoting. The Russian side proposes that potential participants acknowledge the absence of hostile intentions toward one another and adhere to this principle on a reciprocal basis.

Alexei Drobinin outlined several possible formats within which Russia would like to formalize these commitments. The first option involves defense alliances, in which participants commit to assisting one another in the event of aggression. As examples, the Russian Foreign Ministry representative cited Russia's agreements with Belarus and North Korea, as well as the mechanisms of the Collective Security Treaty Organization. The second format consists of political agreements on a mutual refusal to support the other party's adversary in the event of aggression, with Drobinin citing the agreement between Russia and Iran as an example. The third option involves bilateral agreements that, in substance, would meet the criteria of mutual non-aggression pacts.

Within the framework of such agreements, the Russian side is prepared to offer individual NATO member states additional individual security guarantees. Among other possible commitments, Drobinin mentioned a refusal to engage in hostilities against one another, along with a ban on providing territory, transit routes, industrial facilities, and other resources for conducting such actions. Furthermore, the Russian Foreign Ministry representative mentioned the coordination of political and military confidence-building measures.

According to UNITED24 Media, Alexey Drobinin stated on November 11 that Moscow could potentially enter into these non-aggression pacts. This proposal is part of a Moscow-suggested European security arrangement under discussion alongside Ukraine peace negotiations, as reported by Reuters. Vladimir Medinsky, who occasionally leads the Russian delegation in peace talks regarding Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, noted that a new European security structure served as a central topic during two days of discussions in Abu Dhabi, though he did not share specifics about the contents of those discussions.

Moscow has prepared its own position paper on the formation of a new security architecture in Eurasia, which, according to the Kremlin's plan, should include all of its allies. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that the proposed system should not restrict the interests of any of the parties. UA.NEWS noted that earlier, the Turkish foreign minister and Rubio discussed Russia's war against Ukraine and the situation in the Middle East. Additionally, during the G20 foreign ministers' meeting in Atlanta, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov gave no indication that Moscow was ready for peace talks regarding Ukraine, as stated by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas. Russia does not support a ceasefire in Ukraine because the Kremlin fears that a pause in hostilities would allow the Ukrainian side to regroup, according to a statement made on October 30 by Russian Presidential Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.