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Speaking of Russia..

Vladimir Putin's spokesman says one way Donald Trump could help build confidence with Russia after he becomes president would be to persuade NATO to slow down its expansion or withdraw its forces from Russia's borders.

Dmitry Peskov said in an interview with The Associated Press that this "would lead to a kind of detente in Europe."

But unfortunately, he said, Russia now sees "NATO's muscles ... getting bigger and bigger and closer and closer to Russian borders."

At a NATO summit in July, the Western alliance said it is building up positions in Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania in response to what it sees as escalating tensions with Russia. The United States is sending 1,000 troops to Poland next year.

...

Peskov, who is considered one of Putin's closest aides, called NATO "an instrument of confrontation."

When its forces are being enlarged and deploying closer and closer to Russia's borders, he said, "we do not feel ourselves safe."

"Of course, we have to take measures to counter," Peskov said.

As "confidence-building measures" to reduce U.S.-Russia tensions in a Trump presidency "let's say slow down or withdrawal of NATO's military potential from our borders potentially would ease this situation," he said.


http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories...RUMP_INTERVIEW