Russia considers US a 'national security threat' for the first time

Russia's "National Security Strategy" document has for the first time listed the United States as "one of the threats" to the country.

Reuters reported on January 2 that this document was signed by Russian President Putin on the night of December 31, 2015 and replaced the 2009 document signed by then Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, which did not consider the US or NATO as a "security threat" to Russia.

Russian President Putin has signed a document on the National Security Strategy, which considers the US "one of the threats to Russia's security". Photo AP

According to the document, Russia has strengthened its position in resolving global challenges and conflicts around the world, which has forced the West to respond.

“Russia’s strengthening of its position takes place against the backdrop of a number of new threats to its national security. These threats are complex and intertwined,” the document states.

In its National Security Strategy, Russia asserts that pursuing an “independent domestic and international policy” has “caused mixed reactions from the United States and its allies, which have always wanted to maintain their dominant position on global issues.”

This has led to “political, economic, military and informational pressure” on Russia.

Relations between Russia and the West have deteriorated significantly after the West accused Russia of "invading the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in 2014 and supporting the eastern opposition causing the crisis in Ukraine", which Russia has repeatedly denied.

Since then, the US and EU have imposed a series of sanctions against Russian companies, corporations and individuals. In response, Russia has also restricted imports of goods and food from the EU.

The document also considers NATO's expansion to the East as a threat to Russia's national security and asserts that the US has expanded its network of military-biological laboratories in many of Russia's neighboring countries.

According to VOV.VN