30 Jan, 2022 15:08 HomeRussia & FSU

The seeds of the current crisis were sown several decades ago, when Washington decided to double-deal with Moscow

By Professor Alfred de Zayas, an international law expert at the Geneva School of Diplomacy who served as a UN Independent Expert on International Order from 2012-18

FILE PHOTO. © Getty Images / Kay Nietfeld

The current and rapidly escalating tensions between the US and Russia over Ukraine have dominated international headlines and moved stock markets in recent weeks. In reality, they have their roots in a series of NATO actions and omissions following the demise of the Soviet Union in 1989/91.

On the Russian side, there is a widespread perception that Moscow was misled by both Washington and NATO, a pervasive malaise about a breach of trust, and a violation of a ‘gentleman’s agreement’ on fundamental issues of national security.

While the…