NATO chief opposes Russia's security pact proposal

NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen on Thursday hailed a "new phase" in relations with Moscow, though he said he saw no need for a new security deal proposed by Russia, rebuffing the Kremlin's call for new defence arrangements in Europe.
"I think my visit to Russia marks a new phase in the relationship between NATO and Russia, a new beginning", Rasmussen told journalists at a briefing in Moscow. "We are faced with the same threats in a number of areas: terrorism, Afghanistan, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, piracy - just to mention some - and we should join efforts in the fight against these threats and therefore we should develop a true, strategic partnership," he added.
On his first visit to Moscow since taking office on August 1, the NATO chief repeatedly said recent rows should not prevent Russia and the military alliance from confronting a common security threat from Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan.
After talks with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and other Russian leaders, Rasmussen urged greater cooperation between NATO and Russia in Afghanistan. "I think Afghanistan should be the centrepiece of cooperation in 2010 and this is the reason why I have presented to the Russian leadership a concrete list of proposals as to how Russia could further its engagement in our operations in Afghanistan," said Rasmussen. He conceded he had not received any firm offer of support from Moscow in response to his requests for Russia to provide Kabul with helicopters and training support, saying he had never expected to get a firm response this week.
Moscow still views NATO, its Cold War adversary, with deep suspicion. Ties have been severely strained by last year's war between Russia and Georgia and by U.S.-backed plans to invite more former Soviet states to join the alliance.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev published a draft post-cold war security pact on November 29, saying it would replace NATO and other institutions and would restrict the ability of any country to use force unilaterally. "President Medvedev has presented a proposal, a new...a draft European security treaty. I have also made it clear that of course we are prepared to discuss his ideas and his proposals," said Rasmussen. But the NATO chief said a new treaty was unnecessary. "I don't see a need for new treaties or new legally-binding documents because we do have a framework already," he said at the briefing. "NATO and Russia agreed what we called a founding act already in 1997, it contains a lot of very valuable principles for our cooperation and the European security," he added.
Rasmussen said that by 2020, a common anti-missile shield could cover Russia and NATO countries. His optimism about future ties contrasts with years of conflict over previous U.S. plans to install missile interceptors in European countries.