===Relations with NATO===
To assent to the reunification of Germany, Soviet leader [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] ultimately agreed to a proposal from then U.S. Secretary of State [[James Baker (DOS)]] that a reunited Germany would be part of NATO but the military alliance would not move “one inch” to the east, that is, absorb any of the former [[Warsaw Pact]] nations into NATO.{{fact}}<ref>[https://nsarchive.gwu.edu/briefing-book/russia-programs/2017-12-12/nato-expansion-what-gorbachev-heard-western-leaders-early NATO Expansion: What Gorbachev Heard], National Security Archive. nsarchive.gwu.edu</ref>
On Feb. 9, 1990, Baker said: “We consider that the consultations and discussions in the framework of the 2+4 mechanism should give a guarantee that the reunification of Germany will not lead to the enlargement of NATO’s military organization to the East.” On the next day, then German Chancellor [[Helmut Kohl]] said: “We consider that NATO should not enlarge its sphere of activity.”<ref>https://consortiumnews.com/2022/01/28/the-tangled-tale-of-nato-expansion-at-the-heart-of-ukraine-crisis/</ref> Gorbachev’s mistake was not to get it in writing as a legally-binding agreement.<ref>For years it was believed there was no written record of the Baker-Gorbachev exchange at all, until the National Security Archive at George Washington University in December 2017 published a series of memos and cables about these assurances against NATO expansion eastward.</ref>
*[https://www.moonofalabama.org/2022/06/two-big-errors-about-russia-by-helmholtz-smith.html Two Big Errors About Russia] - By Helmholtz Smith, June 23, 2022. moonofalabama.org
*[https://rusi.org/explore-our-research/publications/commentary/return-industrial-warfare The Return of Industrial Warfare], Alex Vershinin, 17 June 2022. Royal United Services Institute.
*[https://youtu.be/keN9BLuWLwA True History of the Russian Mafia #1: Thieves in law, Khruschev's Amnesty, Gang of Mongol], Russians With Attitude, Jan 20, 2024.
*[https://youtu.be/4yJ2e99_guA True History of the Russian Mafia #2: Kazan Phenomenon and Era of Stagnation], Russians With Attitude, Feb 12, 2024.
[[Category:European Countries]]