Russia’s proposals should be seen as an opportunity, failure is not an option

This is a high-stakes exercise. Success would open the door to improved stability and the potential for progress in many critical areas. Failure would mean escalating enmity and instability, potential military conflict threatening the future of Ukraine, and a breakdown in needed areas of cooperation, from nuclear arms control to climate change. Canada’s voice needs to be clearly heard in seriously engaging Russia for a mutually beneficial deal.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s core goal is to enforce the security of Russia by ensuring that he has a buffer between his borders and an encroaching NATO. That means for him no NATO membership for Ukraine or Georgia. But what he has proposed, as an opening gambit, is a series of ideas for negotiation for a broader agreement on European security, writes David Crane. Photograph courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Opinion

BY DAVID CRANE

December 30, 2021

TORONTO—The Jan. 12 launch of negotiations in Geneva on Russian proposals for future security arrangements in Europe should be seen as an opportunity because failure is not an option. This is a high-stakes exercise. Success would open the door to improved stability and the potential for progress ...

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