US President Donald Trump has said he is not at all concerned about predictions of a possible Russian attack on NATO member states, despite growing concerns from European allies.
"I'm not at all concerned. There's no problem," Trump said in an interview with Axios, responding to a question about a possible Russian provocation against the alliance countries.
Yesterday, CIA Director John Ratcliffe made a secret visit to Moscow, where he met with Sergei Naryshkin, the director of Russia's Foreign Intelligence Service. A number of media outlets reported that one of the purposes of the trip was to warn Moscow about the inadmissibility of attacking any NATO member state.
Trump denied this information, noting that the meeting between Ratcliffe and Naryshkin was a "normal working meeting" and did not contain anything unusual. “There was no message, and nothing unusual happened,” the US president said.
Lately, again referring to rumors of a possible warning to Vladimir Putin, Trump avoided direct comment, but emphasized: “They will not attack NATO territory.”
Naryshkin confirmed the meeting with Ratcliffe in Moscow on Thursday, saying the talks were “a normal part of their work” and the parties discussed intelligence issues.
At the same time, European leaders have repeatedly warned in recent months that Russia may try to test NATO’s readiness to defend its members (including through a limited military strike or other provocations). Particular attention is being paid to the US’s readiness to implement Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, which also provides for the collective defense of the alliance countries.
In recent weeks, Russian drones have repeatedly crossed the airspace of NATO member states, including Romania and Poland. Against this background, Moscow has also toughened its rhetoric about Western military support for Ukraine.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has stated that Great Britain and France are “playing with fire” by providing Kiev with technologies for long-range strikes on Russian territory. A representative of the Russian diplomatic service has also threatened to strike British military facilities both inside and outside Ukraine.
