Steinmeier's Warning Against NATO Military Buildup 'Touched on Sore Place'

© AP PhotoGerman Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier - Sputnik International
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German Coordinator for Intersocietal Cooperation With Russia Gernot Erler criticized NATO exercises and supported Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, saying that NATO's decision to deploy troops in Eastern Europe is "dangerous" and "provocative."

In an interview with German newspaper Passauer Neue Presse, Erler said that "the decision to deploy troops as well as military operations is provoking both sides, and it's dangerous."

"Exactly such developments eventually lead to uncontrolled situations, even to a war," the politician argued.

US troops land with parachutes at the military compound near Torun, central Poland, on June 7, 2016, as part of the NATO Anaconda-16 military exercise - Sputnik International
Stop Goading Russia, Steinmeier Urges After NATO Military Exercise
According to Erler, Steinmeier did the right thing by pointing out the danger of military escalation near Russian borders. Earlier, Steinmeier warned NATO against muscles-flexing on Russia's doorstep.

"What we should not do now is to inflame the situation with loud saber-rattling and war cries. Anyone who thinks that symbolic tank parades on the Eastern border of the alliance create more security is mistaken," Steinmeier stressed.

Steinmeier's statements provoked criticism among his colleagues in political circles and in the media. Frankfurter Allgemeine journalist Berthold Kohler called his statement a "gift to Putin."

In Erler's opinion, however, the stormy reaction to Steinmeier's words only means that the diplomat said the right thing that corresponds to reality.

"The fact that the reaction was so violent only proves that he touched on a sore place," the German politician stressed.

Last Tuesday, NATO announced its readiness to deploy additional forces in the Baltic States and Poland. The declared aim of the maneuver is to "protect its Eastern European allies from the so-called Russian aggression."

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