Kremlin to Monitor NATO Summit in Ankara as Confrontational Remarks Continue
Russia's Response to NATO Summit in Turkey
Kremlin's Monitoring of the Summit
MOSCOW, July 7 (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Tuesday that Russia would closely monitor the outcome of the NATO summit in Turkey, adding that a series of "confrontational" statements about Russia had preceded the event.
Context of the NATO Summit
Key Issues and International Tensions
NATO leaders are gathering in Ankara for meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday, amid pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump for Europe to step up defence spending and following months of transatlantic friction over the Iran war and Greenland.
Kremlin's Official Statement
Interest in Summit Developments
"This is an event that is of great interest, including to us. Of course, we will be monitoring all the news and information coming out of Ankara," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists.
Nature of Pre-Summit Statements
Confrontational Tone
He said a large number of statements about Russia had been made ahead of the summit. "To our regret, these were not statements about constructive engagement and dialogue, but rather statements of a confrontational nature," he said, without giving further detail.
U.S. Involvement and Ukraine Conflict
Trump's Comments on Ukraine
On Monday, Trump said he would talk about the war in Ukraine at the summit and that a resolution to the more than four-year conflict was "getting closer than people realise."
Russia's Hopes for Peaceful Resolution
Peskov said Russia hoped U.S. "efforts to steer the entire situation onto a peaceful track (would) ultimately succeed. At the very least, we, as the Russian President has repeatedly said, remain open to this."
Reporting Credits
(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; Writing by Anastasia Teterevleva and Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Mark Trevelyan, Alexandra Hudson)
