Lavrov Shares Russian Concerns Over NATO Eastward Expansion With Valdai Experts

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov took part on Thursday in a meeting with political experts and former officials at a closed session of Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi and raised the issue of Russian concerns over the expansion of NATO eastward, a participant of the meeting told reporters.

SOCHI (Sputnik) — In the post-Cold War era, NATO saw a 75-percent increase in membership – from 16 to 28 members. The 12 new members were all in Eastern Europe, either former Warsaw Pact member states, including three former Soviet republics, or former Yugoslav federal republics.

"The second topic was related to the Russia-Europe relations. This is in general the OSCE and NATO. Lavrov spoke about the great extent to which, in his view, the expansion of NATO eastward spoiled the perspective of establishemnet of the united and indivisible world," Nikolai Zlobin, president of the Center on Global Interests, said.

The Valdai Discussion Club was established in 2004, and seeks to promote dialogue of Russian and international intellectual elites on global political, economic and social developments. Its 13th annual meeting is taking place on October 24-27 and is titled "The Future of Progress: Shaping the World of Tomorrow."