Former NATO Head Warns of ‘Sleepwalking’ into Confrontation with Russia

PRESS RELEASE

Former NATO Head Warns of ‘Sleepwalking’ into Confrontation with Russia

Jan. 13, 2017 (EIRNS)—In remarks to the House of Lords, Sir George Robertson, former Secretary-General of NATO (1999-2003), warned Britain—and the West—that they may be "sleepwalking into a potential calamity" of confrontation with Russia, according to the Daily Mail tabloid.

"We must be aware of and act on the dangers inherent in the present confrontation between Russia and the West," he intoned.

"Without the tripwires and warning arrangements of the Cold War, we are in grave danger of making a mistake or a miscalculation with potentially catastrophic results. We have a crisis of optimism—hoping for the best and failing to prepare for the worst."

Robertson’s remarks were reported in the context of statements by senior Tory MP Crispin Blunt, head of the foreign affairs select committee, who said that absent a war, the Russia-UK relationship "is about as bad as it could get," adding that the mutual "official shouting match between the UK and Russia isn’t helping either country or wider international relations."