MOSCOW — Russia’s defense minister Tuesday accused the United States of beefing up its military presence near Russian borders and poaching for mineral wealth there, signaling that Moscow could take a tough position in upcoming talks with Barack Obama’s new administration.
Anatoly Serdyukov’s statement — made alongside President Dmitry Medvedev at a meeting of the military’s top brass — reflected deeply entrenched Russian suspicions despite Obama’s desire to improve relations with Moscow.
Medvedev, meanwhile, cited NATO expansion, international terrorism and regional conflicts as reasons why upgrading Russia’s nuclear forces was the top priority in an ambitious military modernization plan that he pledged to pursue despite the worst economic crisis in a decade.
Relations with Russia plunged to a post-Cold War low under the previous U.S. administration, whose plans to build missile-defense sites in eastern Europe and bring former Soviet republics into NATO angered Moscow.
Medvedev’s first meeting with Obama next month will set the tone for talks on a new arms-control treaty and other major disputes — and Russia is signaling that it will be a tough negotiator. The two are scheduled to confer during an economic summit in England.
Moscow has fiercely opposed plans to put Ukraine and Georgia on track to NATO membership. Russia also has threatened to deploy missiles next to Poland if the U.S. goes ahead with the missile shield.
