The Russian Foreign Ministry has officially announced that it has handed over to the United States its response on security guarantees in Europe. The main theses of the document appeared on the Kommersant website.

U.S. Ambassador John Sullivan, who was invited to the Russian Foreign Ministry, was handed Moscow’s response to an earlier U.S. response to the Russian draft treaty between Russia and the United States on security guarantees.

The 10-page document notes that “the U.S. side did not give a constructive response to the basic elements of the draft treaty with the United States on security guarantees prepared by the Russian side.” Russia, the Foreign Ministry warned, will be forced to respond.

The message points out that the U.S. never gave a constructive response on several basic elements. These include the rejection of further NATO expansion, the withdrawal of the “Bucharest formula” that “Ukraine and Georgia will become NATO members,” and the refusal to establish military bases on the territory of former Soviet states that are not members of the alliance, including the use of their infrastructure for any military activity, as well as the return of military capabilities, including strike capabilities, and NATO infrastructure to the state of 1997, when the NATO-Russia Founding Act was signed. It is emphasized that these points are of fundamental importance for Russia.

The Foreign Ministry also said that the U.S. side ignored “the package nature of the Russian proposals, from which “convenient” topics were deliberately chosen, which in turn were “twisted” in the direction of creating advantages for the United States and its allies. This approach, as well as the accompanying rhetoric of U.S. officials, reinforces reasonable doubts that Washington is truly committed to fixing the euro security situation.”

Moscow, it goes on to say, is alarmed by the growing U.S. and NATO military activity directly near Russia’s borders, while Russia’s “red lines” and its fundamental security interests, as well as Russia’s sovereign right to defend them, continue to be ignored.

“Ultimatum demands to withdraw troops from certain areas on Russian territory, accompanied by threats of tougher sanctions, are unacceptable and undermine the prospects of reaching real agreements,” the letter said.

“In the absence of willingness on the part of the U.S. side to agree on firm, legally binding guarantees of ensuring our security on the part of the United States and its allies, Russia will be forced to respond, including by implementing measures of a military-technical nature,” the document reads.