Germany says NATO will resume diplomatic contacts with Russia

Brussels (dpa) - German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said Wednesday that he expects regular diplomatic contacts between NATO and Russia to soon resume, despite tensions between the two sides over the conflict in Ukraine.Germany has long been pushing for a return to regular dialogue with Moscow. NATO foreign ministers discussed the issue on Tuesday, also amid wishes to avoid dangerous incidents such as the recent downing of a Russian jet by NATO member Turkey.Steinmeier said that NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg was instructed by the ministers to make preparations for the revival of the NATO-Russia Council, which has not met on the diplomat level since June 2014.NATO suspended all practical cooperation with Russia after its annexation of Ukraine‘s Crimean peninsula last year, although some political and military contacts have been maintained.Steinmeier said he expects that "meetings on the level of ambassadors will probably soon be made possible again."Other foreign ministers, however, were more cautious."What exactly the dialogue should look like, it‘s to be decided yet," Slovakian Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajcak said. "Whether it should be a NATO-Russia Council or some different form, ... some sort of dialogue is necessary."But some eastern European NATO members have been wary of a return to "business as usual" in relations with Russia.