Zach Nunn: “I believe that it is clear in those meetings that the fear among reformers and democrats is that this issue, which most…”

“I believe that it is clear in those meetings that the fear among reformers and democrats is that this issue, which most of them do not realistically see as a threat to Russia, but that this expansion of NATO will give the nationalists, the extremists, the demagogues, those who want to restructure and rebuild the empire and threaten their neighbors, will give them an argument to be made for the Russian population that has been hearing that NATO is an enemy for the last 40, 45 years. So, it is the great concern of the reformers in Russia that I believe we have to take into account. We will not be doing anyone in Europe a favor if, by taking certain action regarding NATO expansion, we end up giving an edge in the political process to the most extremist elements in Russia. This is not to say that we should give them a veto. They should have no veto. NATO should make its own decisions. But Russian behavior and economic reality in Europe also should play a very important role in how we go about taking these important steps.”