The meeting of the Russia-NATO Council in 2020 did not take place due to the fault of the Russian side, according to the report of NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on the 2020 results released on Tuesday.

In 2020, NATO remained committed to dialogue within the NATO-Russia Council to discuss international security issues, enhance transparency and predictability. Since February, NATO has repeatedly offered Russia to hold a meeting in this format, but Moscow has systematically refused. This led to the fact that the NATO-Russia Council did not take place in 2020, the document says.

Speaking before the deputies of the European Parliament, the NATO Secretary-General said that he did not see direct military threats from Russia and China, but considered it a merit of the existence of the North Atlantic Alliance.

NATO has earlier said on several occasions that it favors a combined approach in relations with Russia, combining dialogue with deterrence and concern for the security and defense of allies. Stoltenberg noted that Russia must comply with international law, including respect for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of all states.