The Russian Government announced the termination of three defense cooperation agreements signed between 1989 and 2000 with Portugal, Canada and France.
The decision was formalized through a decree issued by Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin on Friday, cited by the official Russian news agency TASS.
The document states that the decision includes the treaty between Russia and Portugal for military cooperation, signed on August 4, 2000, as well as a 1989 pact between the former Soviet Union and Canada and a 1994 protocol with France.
The Government argued that the three agreements lack strategic relevance in the current context, and were therefore terminated simultaneously, without any consideration of possible substitutes or alternative cooperation mechanisms.
The government order further stipulates that the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is responsible for formally notifying Portugal, Canada and France of the decision, in order to complete the corresponding diplomatic procedure.
According to the decree, notification constitutes the final step necessary for the definitive closure of the agreements.
The revocation of the pacts reflects Russia’s growing distance from the West in matters of security and technical cooperation.
In July, Mishustin had already terminated a military-technical cooperation agreement with Germany, accusing Berlin of pursuing an “openly hostile policy” and an “increasingly aggressive militaristic stance”.
Portugal and France support a plan presented by the European Commission to channel revenues from the approximately 235 billion euros of Russian assets frozen in the European Union (EU) to Kiev.
On Friday, the Russian ambassador to Germany, Serguei Nechayev, warned that the use of Russian sovereign assets frozen in Europe to finance Ukraine will have “considerable consequences” for the EU.
“Any transaction with Russia’s sovereign assets without the country’s consent would be a theft. And it is clear that the theft of Russian state funds will have far-reaching consequences,” Nechayev said.
Ukraine has relied on financial and weapons aid from Western allies since Russia invaded the country on February 24, 2022.
Kiev’s allies have also enacted sanctions against key sectors of the Russian economy to try to diminish Moscow’s ability to finance the war effort in Ukraine.
The Russian military offensive on Ukrainian territory has plunged Europe into what is considered the most serious security crisis since the Second World War (1939-1945).