NATO and Russia

NATO-Russia relations formally began in 1991 at the inaugural session of the North Atlantic Cooperation Council (later renamed the Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council), which was created following the end of the Cold War as a forum for consultation to foster a new cooperative relationship with the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. It was actually while this meeting was taking place that the Soviet Union dissolved. A few years later, in 1994, Russia joined the Partnership for Peace programme – a major programme of practical security and defense cooperation between NATO and individual Partner countries.


NATO member states and Russia regularly consult on current security issues and are developing practical cooperation in a wide range of areas of common interest.
The NATO-Russia Council (NRC) was established in May 2002 as the main forum for advancing NATO-Russia relations, in which the 26 Allies and Russia work together as equal partners to identify and pursue opportunities for joint action. The decision to establish the NRC was taken in the wake of the September 2001 terrorist attacks, which reinforced the need for coordinated action to respond to common threats.…