The Telegraph: Russia may demand withdrawal of NATO troops from Poland and the Baltic states in talks with Europe

Russia plans to use a new round of negotiations to end the war against Ukraine to obtain concessions from NATO, including a reduction in the Allianceʼs presence in Eastern Europe.

This is reported by The Telegraph, citing diplomatic sources.

Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said that Europe should be involved in negotiations between Russia, Ukraine, and the United States, because it "will be crucial" for reaching an agreement.

However, sources told The Telegraph that Moscow is actually trying to get European countries to compromise on NATO’s presence in Europe, something Putin has repeatedly called one of the “root causes” of the war against Ukraine.

According to the publication, Russia may demand that the Alliance return its military presence in Europe to the level of 1997 — that is, before many Eastern European countries had yet to join NATO.

In fact, this could mean a demand to reduce or withdraw NATO forces from Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, as well as Finland, which became a member of the Alliance in 2023. All of these countries share a common border with Russia.

A new round of trilateral talks between Ukraine, the United States, and Russia is planned to be held in the first half of November in Abu Dhabi.

Ushakov has already said that no significant breakthrough should be expected from this meeting, calling it essentially a trial round. According to him, Moscow wants the talks to also cover the future security system in Europe.

Previous talks have failed to produce a ceasefire. Russia, in particular, continues to demand that Ukraine hand over all of the Donetsk region, including areas not controlled by Russian forces.

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