Medvedev Chides NATO Over Georgia, Ukraine

Russia's Medvedev Says NATO "not Ready" For Georgia And Ukraine Membership

(AP) Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said NATO is beginning to realize that Georgia and Ukraine should not be "dragged" into the alliance.




"The understanding that these respected states are not ready to make this sort of decision and that the alliance is not ready to absorb them is gradually understood," Medvedev said in a prerecorded interview broadcast Sunday on Russia's NTV television. "We don't think it's right to drag certain countries into military and political alliances against the will of their nationals."




Earlier this week, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden visited both ex-Soviet nations and pledged support for their efforts to break free of Russia's orbit and join the alliance.




Moscow has struggled to revive its clout in former Soviet states, and has often bristled at Washington for close relations with the pro-Western leaders of Ukraine and Georgia.




In Sunday's broadcast, Medvedev said that Ukraine, where the idea of joining the alliance remains unpopular, should hold a referendum to "provide a legitimate ground" for NATO membership.




As for Georgia, Medvedev said, "Does NATO need a state that has that many problems?"




Georgia's drive to join NATO added to the tensions before preceded Russia's war with the tiny Caucasus Mountains nation last summer. Since the war, Russia has persistently warned the U.S. not to rearm Georgia, and has ignored Western anger over its recognition of two Moscow-backed separatist regions in Georgia as independent nations.




Medvedev spoke disapprovingly of Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili and said that his government harms historically close ties between Russian and Georgian nations. "Regimes, like that of Saakashvili, come and go, but feelings between the nations remain," Medvedev said.




The war drove already strained relations between Russia and the U.S. to a post-Cold War low. President Barack Obama has declared his intention to "reset" those ties, and both sides saw the July 6-8 Moscow summit as a chance to begin.




Medvedev emphasized the importance of good ties with Washington, but said Russia will not be pushed around _ a stance often asserted by his tougher-talking predecessor Vladimir Putin, who is now prime minister.




In the NTV interview, Medvedev compared today's Russia to the Soviet Union.




"We want to see Russia as a strong state. Not for the sake of flexing muscles, not for teaching someone lessons, but for creating good life conditions for our citizens," he said.




At a summit in Romania last year, NATO leaders decided to offer Ukraine and Georgia a so-called "membership action plan" to prepare them to become members.




Faced with opposition from Moscow and after the Russian-Georgian war, NATO has since backed away from establishing the plan, but offered to step up military and political cooperation to help the countries achieve their goal of eventual membership.