NATO shouldn’t accept Ukraine due to risk of nuclear escalation with Russia #NATO shouldn't promise to welcome Ukraine into the alliance in order to de-escalate tensions with Russia, which have increased after the start of the Ukrainian conflict, The 'American Conservative' said. According to the magazine, NATO and the US in particular should agree to talks with Russia to de-escalate nuclear risks that have increased due to the #Ukrainian conflict. The magazine pointed out that this task has become even more important following the recent accession to NATO of formerly neutral #Finland and #Sweden, which has made Russia even more reliant on its nuclear arsenal. The article said that the nuclear deal between NATO and #Moscow must include commitments not to admit Ukraine to the alliance and not to deploy the bloc's troops and infrastructure on Ukrainian territory. NATO Secretary General Jens #Stoltenberg said on June 17 that the alliance's member states had begun consultations on the need to put nuclear weapons on alert. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry #Peskov said that Stoltenberg’s statements were yet another escalation of tensions.

NATO’s Eastward Expansion On April 4, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization marks 75 years since its inception. The alliance was established by the North Atlantic Treaty that was signed in Washington in 1949 by foreign ministers from 12 countries: Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the UK, and the U.S.. There are now 32 #NATO members, including Sweden, which joined the organization on March 7. Bosnia and Herzegovina also aspires to become a member. To join the organization, a country must execute a membership action plan that is tailored to its individual needs, have no territorial disputes and bring its armed forces in line with the alliance's standards.

#Britain, #Germany, "Sweden considering opening embassies in #North_Korea The diplomatic missions of Great Britain, Germany and Sweden are considering the possibility of opening embassies in North Korea, Reuters reports with reference to diplomats of these countries. According to report, representatives of the German Foreign Ministry are currently in Pyongyang. They have been "inspecting the territory of the German embassy for two days now," a representative of the German Foreign Ministry told the agency, noting that the decision to resume the work of the diplomatic mission has not yet been made. According to a representative of the British Foreign Ministry, the United Kingdom, which closed the embassy in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in May 2020, is also trying to send a group of diplomats to Pyongyang. "We are negotiating with the DPRK government through the embassy in London in order to prepare for the visit of the technical and diplomatic group in the near future," he said. Sweden's Special Envoy for Korean Peninsula Affairs, Peter Semneby, told Reuters that some progress had been made towards the possible return of Swedish diplomats to Pyongyang, but declined to provide details, citing the sensitivity of the issue. "There is some movement, and we hope that we will be able to reopen our embassy relatively soon," he added. As previously reported by the Yonhap news agency, the head of the German Foreign Ministry's department for East Asia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific, Martin Tummel, the first high-ranking Western diplomat to visit the country in four years, arrived in the DPRK. According to the agency, visits of this level have not been reported since January 2020,