NATO, Russia agree to resume military ties

September 18th, 2009 BRUSSELS - NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen Friday called for a new beginning in NATO-Russia relations and conducting a joint review of new security challenges. "A time-out may have been useful to rethink our relationship.

August 3rd, 2009 BRUSSELS - NATO welcomed its 12th secretary general Monday as Denmark's former prime minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen arrived for his first day in the organisation's top job. At a low-key ceremony under the flags of the alliance's 28 members, 56-year-old Rasmussen was welcomed to NATO by his deputy, Claudio Bisogniero, the head of the alliance's military committee, Admiral Giampaolo di Paola, and a handful of alliance staff.

July 22nd, 2009 NATO, Russia consider ways to boost cooperationBRUSSELS — Diplomats from NATO and Russia met on Wednesday to discuss ways of cooperating in the battle against pirates off Somalia and supplying alliance forces fighting in Afghanistan. Russian ambassador to NATO Dmitry Rogozin said Russia wanted to set up an international criminal court to try captured Somali pirates, rather than prosecuting them in local courts in countries such as Kenya.

July 6th, 2009 US, Russia agree to resume military cooperationMOSCOW — The United States and Russia say they are resuming military cooperation suspended after Russia invaded its smaller neighbor Georgia last year. The expected announcement came Monday, as President Barack Obama and Russian president Dmitry Medvedev (dih-MEE'-tree med-VYEH'-dyev) met for their first summit in Moscow.

July 3rd, 2009 MOSCOW - Moscow and Washington will sign deals expanding bilateral military ties and on transit of military supplies via Russia to the American troops in Afghanistan during President Barack Obama's visit to the Russian capital, an official said Friday. The signing of the pacts will reflect "the political decision on the resumption of full-scale military contacts between Russia and the United States", which were frozen after the war between Russia and Georgia over South Ossetia last year, Kremlin aide Sergei Prikhodko has said.

June 29th, 2009 Russia holds major war games in CaucasusMOSCOW — Thousands of troops, backed by hundreds of tanks, artillery and other heavy weaponry, began rumbling through the North Caucasus on Monday, as Russia began its largest military exercises since last year's war with Georgia. The Caucasus 2009 war games are being seen by many experts as a direct threat to nearby Georgia, where the government says it has rearmed armed forces and where NATO recently wrapped up its own exercises.

June 27th, 2009 CORFU - NATO and Russia agreed to relaunch formal cooperation on security threats Saturday, following their first top-level talks since the Georgia war soured relations last year. Gathering on the Greek island of Corfu, foreign ministers from the 28 NATO states and Russia agreed to relaunch formal cooperation on security issues ranging from counter-terrorism to piracy.

June 27th, 2009 NATO and Russia expected to resume military tiesCORFU, Greece — NATO and Russia are set to resume military ties Saturday and agree to cooperate on Afghanistan, counterterrorism and anti-piracy patrols at their first high-level meeting since last year's war between Russia and Georgia, Western officials said. Relations between the alliance and the Russian military were frozen in the aftermath of the five-day war last August.

June 27th, 2009 NATO and Russia resume military tiesCORFU, Greece — NATO and Russia agreed to resume military ties Saturday in their first high-level meeting since Russia's war with Georgia disrupted their relations 10 months ago. NATO's outgoing Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer announced that the so-called NATO-Russia Council, a panel set up in 2002 to improve ties between the former Cold War rivals, was operational again.

June 26th, 2009 NATO-Russia foreign ministers to open meetingCORFU, Greece — NATO and Russia are likely to resume formal military ties Saturday at their first high-level meeting since last year's war between Russia and Georgia. Relations between the alliance and the Russian military were frozen in the aftermath of that conflict.

May 14th, 2009 Russia offers to revive European arms-control dealMOSCOW — Russia said Thursday it was proposing a new version of a key European arms-control treaty it suspended more than a year ago, and could once again honor the agreement if the U.S. and its NATO allies accept the changes.

April 30th, 2009 Russia's NATO envoy says 2 diplomats expelledBRUSSELS — Russia's NATO envoy says two Russian diplomats will be expelled from the military alliance for alleged spying. Dmitry Rogozin says the two members of Russia's permanent NATO representation will have their accreditation to NATO headquarters in Brussels canceled.

April 29th, 2009 NATO resumes formal contacts with RussiaBRUSSELS — NATO and Russia resumed formal contacts Wednesday, eight months after they were suspended because of last year's war with Georgia, officials said. The talks were held within the framework of the NATO-Russia Council, a panel set up in 2002 to improve relations between the former Cold War foes.

April 28th, 2009 EU optimistic on renewing ties with RussiaLUXEMBOURG — The European Union's foreign policy chief says he is optimistic the European Union can follow the lead of the U.S. in rebuilding ties with Russia.

April 4th, 2009 Baden-BADEN - NATO leaders failed to agree on the appointment of Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen as the alliance's next secretary general during dinner talks in the German city of Baden-Baden, officials said Friday. Rasmussen, 56, had been tipped as the frontrunner to replace the current NATO chief, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, when the Dutchman steps down at the end of July.