Putin expects NATO answers for Ukraine

 

 President Putin has called on NATO to respond immediately to Moscow's demands to withdraw troops from Central and Eastern Europe after Russia announced military exercises in Crimea, according to The Times.

"You have to provide guarantees. "You need to do this now, not now, and keep blabbering on like this about decades of negotiations," Putin, 69, told a news conference in Moscow.

 Russia made a series of demands to NATO last week, essentially urging it to formally commit itself to halting further expansion into Russia's borders, as well as renouncing its promise that Ukraine would one day become a member of the Western military alliance.

"We want to ensure our security," Putin said. "We make this clear: there should be no further NATO enlargement to the east. The ball is in the field of (NATO). They have to give us some answer. "

If NATO agrees to Russia's ultimatum, it will be forced to withdraw troops and military equipment from Poland and Romania, as well as from Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. All five countries are also members of the European Union.

 Putin accused NATO of lying to Moscow by expanding to Russia's borders in the 1990s and 2000s. When Russia complained that NATO enlargement threatened its security, Putin said the bloc had responded by saying, "Express your concerns, we will do what we deem necessary."

"Are we launching missiles at the US border?" "The United States has come to our home with its missiles: they are already on our doorstep," he said. "Is it too much to want them to stop launching more missiles near our homes?"

 Tensions have risen in recent weeks amid a buildup of Russian troops near Ukraine. Alexei Danilov, a senior Ukrainian security official, warned yesterday that 122,000 Russian troops were within 125 miles of his country's eastern borders.

Putin said the Kremlin was not looking for a conflict in Ukraine, but ruled out two opportunities to state emphatically that Russia would not invade.

 Despite his fighting spirit, Putin said there were positive signs of Washington's readiness to discuss Russia's demands.

"Our American colleagues have told us that they are ready to start this discussion, these talks, at the very beginning of next year in Geneva," he said.

The White House said it was open to discussions on NATO enlargement, but said it "will not compromise the key principles on which European security is built".