REACHING OUT TO RUSSIA

摘要

There's no love lost between Moscow and NATO. Over the past two decades, nine former So-viet states and satellites have joined the U.S.-led alliance, and others have hinted at following suit. This expansion has fed a deep distrust between Moscow and the West, and even contributed to Russia's decision to invade Georgia in 2008.But NATO seems to be following President Barack Obama's lead and attempting to "reset" relations with the Kremlin. At last week's NATO meeting in Estonia (itself once part of the empire), Secretary-General Anders Rasmussen suggested that Russia be included in NATO plans to build a missile-defense system. Although thick with irony-President Reagan first proposed a missile shield in 1983 as a safeguard against the Soviets-the overture was a clear attempt to ease Kremlin concerns that the antimissile system is targeted at Russia.