A Kremlin aide has accused Nato leaders of “lying” because they now see Russia as a threat having previously seen them as a friend.
It seems Vladimir Putin’s aide Nikolai Patrushev has forgotten exactly why Moscow’s relationship with Russia has changed.
Speaking to Russian outlet, Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Patrushev suggested Nato – the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation – had been inconsistent with Russia.
According to a translation of his remarks in Russia’s state news agency TASS, he began his criticism of Nato by claiming it had portrayed itself as a regional organisation, but is now looking to expand into the Asia-Pacific region.
He claimed: “Lying is a years-long basic principle of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and its leaders – Washington and London – so the alliance cannot be trusted.”
He said that different countries within Nato had, at different times, claimed to be allies with Moscow and pledged not to expand eastward.
However, he complained how the alliance members “openly call Russia the main threat” now.
It is true that Nato members spent years trying to seek a positive relationship with Moscow.
But he missed out the part where Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
Since then, Moscow has repeatedly threatened to use its nuclear weapons against the West for supporting Kyiv.
The Kremlin has repeatedly blamed Nato for the Ukraine war, suggesting it was backed into a corner as the defence alliance was expanding eastwards and trying to make Kyiv anti-Russia.
Putin has also repeatedly made it clear that he wants to seize the whole of Ukraine in an enormous land grab.
The Nato website has debunked these claims though, saying that the alliance is not at war with Russia and that it never promised Russia it would not expand after the Cold War.
The website says: “For more than 30 years, Nato tried to build a partnership with Russia, developing dialogue and practical cooperation in areas of common interest.
“Despite this, Russia has continuously violated the norms and principles that contributed to a stable and predictable European security order, particularly over the past decade.”
A former KGB officer, Patrushev served as the secretary of the Security Council of Russia from 2008, and played a prominent part in the Kremlin’s war machine until earlier this year.
Putin kicked him out of that official role in May and he now serves as a presidential aide.
Patrushev is often perceived as paranoid and known for making outlandish remarks.
In 2015, he even claimed the US “would prefer Russia not to exist at all”.