There was shock across Europe this week when Russia announced it was closing its mission at NATO headquarters in Brussels and ordering NATO staff to leave Moscow. After all, such direct contacts between the Kremlin and the Western military alliance had been established at the end of the Cold War to prevent misunderstandings from escalating into conflict.
NATO
The Globe and Mail: Russia’s break with NATO heightens fears of military escalation
This handout picture made available by the Russian Defence Ministry on Sept. 13, 2021 shows the "Zapad-2021" joint military drills of the armed forces of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus at the Mulino army base in the Nizhny Novgorod region, some 350 kilometers east of Moscow.
