Kremlin demands written guarantees that NATO will not expand eastward – Peskov

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has insisted that Russia requires written assurances from NATO that it will not expand eastward, rejecting verbal guarantees as inadequate. In an interview with state-controlled Channel One, Peskov stated that such assurances must be backed by concrete actions. Moscow has reportedly received assurances on this matter from both Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and Russia's first president, Boris Yeltsin.

However, Peskov argued that NATO has expanded five or six times since then. Earlier this year, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned of using nuclear weapons in response to a military conflict with NATO, during a speech at the Valdai Discussion Club on October 1. Putin maintained that Russia's actions were not intended to intimidate, but emphasized that the use of all available weapons would be considered if there is a direct attack on the Russian Federation.

On September 30, Reuters reported that Russia had warned NATO of its preparedness to deploy nuclear weapons in response to any increase in Western military presence near Kaliningrad, Russia's Baltic Sea exclave.