Linkevicius: NATO-Russia Council meeting was not fruitful
Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevičius claims that the meeting between NATO and Russian diplomats was not fruitful, Delfi reported.
After a meeting of the NATO-Russia Council on Wednesday in Brussels, Linkevičius said that the current dialogue with Russia is certainly better than having no communication at all, but the two sides have not been able to come to a consensus on the most important issues, including the conflict in Ukraine.
"Of course, it is better to talk than not to talk, but I would have liked for there to have been some influence and real life change after these meetings. We want to see changes in reality, in conflict resolution, in recognition of the facts,” the Lithuanian Foreign Minister said.
Commenting on Russia’s suggestion to prohibit military aircraft from flying over the Baltic Sea with transponders turned off, Linkevičius stressed that this would do little to lessen the danger that the maneuvers of Russian military aircraft pose to civil aviation in the area.
"As we predicted, the Alliance said that all these transponders are only a technical detail, and not the most important factor… [which is] the dangerous maneuvers and stuff that we recorded from the Russian side,” the Minister explained.
NATO aircraft intercepted two Russian Su-27 fighters near the Latvian border on Wednesday, an occurrence which has become increasingly common over the last two years.