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Russia`s Defense Minister Sergey Ivanov stated that Ukraine`s NATO entry would strain bilateral relations with Russia, RIA Novosti news agency reported Thursday.
He made this statement in the course of a session of the Russian-Ukrainian interstate commission security subcommittee in Kiev. Ukraine has a sovereign right to join the Western security alliance, but this move will have negative consequences for bilateral relations, Ivanov said.
At the same time he noticed that it would be up to the Ukrainian people and the Ukrainian political elite to decide on the most effective forms of their security.
Russian defense officials are seriously concerned over NATO
