BONN -- Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev accused the West of breaking its word to him by pressing ahead with plans to admit Eastern European countries into NATO.
In an interview with Germany's Stern weekly released ahead of publication Thursday, Russian presidential candidate Gorbachev said Western powers had agreed during negotiations on German unification not to expand the military alliance eastward.
"This is what was declared," he was quoted as saying. "Then the Soviet Union ceased to exist, Russia tramped about in a weakened state, and our Western partners did not want to remember they had given their word as gentlemen. This is short-sighted."
Western officials have previously denied that they promised to freeze the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as plans were drawn up for German unification in 1990.
At the time, Gorbachev fought hard to prevent formerly communist East Germany being absorbed into NATO. Aware Soviet domination of Eastern Europe was crumbling, he found himself under strong pressure from the military to oppose such a move.
But Western leaders managed to persuade him that moving NATO's borders east would not threaten Moscow.
Gorbachev did not state specifically what assurances he had received.
In an interview with Germany's Stern weekly released ahead of publication Thursday, Russian presidential candidate Gorbachev said Western powers had agreed during negotiations on German unification not to expand the military alliance eastward.
"This is what was declared," he was quoted as saying. "Then the Soviet Union ceased to exist, Russia tramped about in a weakened state, and our Western partners did not want to remember they had given their word as gentlemen. This is short-sighted."
Western officials have previously denied that they promised to freeze the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as plans were drawn up for German unification in 1990.
At the time, Gorbachev fought hard to prevent formerly communist East Germany being absorbed into NATO. Aware Soviet domination of Eastern Europe was crumbling, he found himself under strong pressure from the military to oppose such a move.
But Western leaders managed to persuade him that moving NATO's borders east would not threaten Moscow.
Gorbachev did not state specifically what assurances he had received.