They quick to resort to conspiracy theories

They regularly showed open interest in applying to a pan-Atlantic defensive pact and you’re asking for evidence

Yes i am give me some your making the claim

Ok but he didn't apply and didn't get "rejected by NATO" like you're saying.

Here’s Molotov proposing to join NATO in 1954: wilsoncenter.org/publication/molotovs-proposal-the-ussr-join-nato-march-1954

Yeltsin seeking to join NATO in 1991: nytimes.com/1991/12/21/world/soviet-disarray-yeltsin-says-russia-seeks-to-join-nato.html

The Russian Federation asked more than once not just in 1991

Working rn ill give these a read in a sec

The 1954 application was rejected the USSR was entirely and sincerely open to disarming and cooperating in Europe but they were rejected

“We can’t accept their membership to reduce their danger because they’re dangerous” is circular door theory and will lead to nothing but escalation. You gotta bend the knee every once in a while

Unfortunate what happened in 1954, but they were still the USSR at the time, so I dont know how that influenced it.

1991 was not an application, just a sentiment expressed by Yeltsin of maybe wanting to join in the future.

So the only time Russia seriously wanted to join NATO was 70 years ago.

its over

Heard theyll keep paying their employees still

China buying Gazprom?

I still truly don’t see how we can’t come to the agreement that NATO made a bad call by not actively working post-1991 to ensure that Russia would be treated differently and not alienated again by integrating and accepting them into the European scene

Alienation of a dissolved power has only led to further revanchist aggression, as happened in Germany. Why did we make the same mistakes in Russia?

At this rate Russia’s gonna be a Chinese satellite

Xi made a pragmatically good choice

“ In May 1954 the Western powers rejected the Soviet proposal to join NATO on grounds that the USSR's membership of the organization would be incompatible with its democratic and defensive aims. ”
Valid

Dont have a way around NYT paywall on my phone

At the end of the day both parties need to come to that agreement. Some random statements were made from Russia with no clear plan for joining. It is unfair to say that it was NATO's or Europe's fault.

How would the USSR joining NATO be incompatible with its defensive aims wouldn’t it protect all of Europe to be defensively cooperative with the other biggest power ? Wasn’t the US overly aggressive in its own geopolitical scene?

Democracy itself is debatable as well when Francisco Franco, a literal fascist dictator, and Turkey, which itself is basically a dictatorship now, are members of NATO

I recall rumblings of Russia warning the west of allowing Ukraine to use their airbases
Wonder if thats coming into fruition

C'mon lol

It’s obviously not entirely their fault

But NATO was in the pole position in 1991. They had the upper hand and they had a responsibility that they didn’t keep

The exact same thing happened to Nazi Germany

Yes sure it’s the immediate fault of Germany that the country became the monster it was but who was responsible for the overarching conditions that led to such a conclusion? The UK, France, and US created terrible conditions and an unforgiving atmosphere that fueled revanchist sentiment and birthed fascism in the Weimar Republic