New Russia Foreign Minister Talks Tough

New Russian Foreign Minister Yevgeny M. Primakov on Friday moved swiftly to define himself as a tough-minded nationalist--no weak-willed lackey of the West--by vowing to fight U.S. plans to include former Soviet Bloc nations in NATO.

“It is vitally important for Russia to fend off developments that could bring NATO’s military infrastructure closer to our territory, closer to our border,” Primakov said.

His spokesman, Grigory Karasin, backed him up with strong words in an interview with a Moscow radio station.

“If Russia feels endangered, then that sense of concern will make all of Europe insecure,” Karasin said.

Just this week, U.S. Defense Secretary William J. Perry predicted that Russia will readily accept an eastward expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to include countries such as Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic. But Primakov served notice that he will not bend so easily.

Sketching an alarmist scenario of nuclear weapons poised within a quick strike of Russia, Primakov made it clear that he found NATO’s proposed expansion threatening.

“It would be counterproductive for stability in Europe,” he said.

Four times in the opening minutes of his news conference, Primakov called Russia a “great power”--a bit of patriotic boasting that underscored his reputation as a staunch nationalist unlikely to kowtow to U.S. demands.

Primakov, the former chief of Russia’s overseas spying operations, insisted that he wants to maintain friendly relations with the United States and all other countries. He pledged not to let former Cold War foes slip back into confrontation. But he emphasized that Russia will not accept second-class treatment.

“In spite of the present difficulties, Russia was and remains a great power,” he said. “Our foreign policy should reflect that status.”

In developing ties with the United States, Primakov said, he will aim for “an equitable--I want to stress specifically, equitable--and mutually beneficial partnership.”

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His first opportunity to build that relationship will come next month, when he meets with U.S. Secretary of State Warren Christopher to plan a summit in Moscow on nuclear security.

Primakov’s assertive defense of Russia’s superpower status has received praise from Communists and nationalists, who won big in last month’s parliamentary elections.

Communist leader Gennady A. Zyuganov called him a “skilled statesman,” and ultranationalist Vladimir V. Zhirinovsky lauded him as “the right choice” for the job.

Rabble-rousing politicians of the left and right had repeatedly denounced Primakov’s predecessor, Andrei V. Kozyrev, for humiliating Russia by cozying up to the West.

Given the chance at Friday’s news conference, Primakov declined to comment on Kozyrev’s performance. But he announced that he intends to diversify Russian diplomacy by reaching out to the former Soviet republics now struggling along as independent nations.

“Naturally, the rebirth of the Soviet Union in its old form is not on the agenda and can never be,” Primakov said. “The sovereignty acquired by the republics is irreversible. But that does not cancel the need for integration, especially in the economic sphere.”

Promising to carry out a “more active foreign policy,” Primakov also said he will press for the United States and Russia to ratify the START II treaty. And he suggested that Russia could co-chair a Middle East peace conference with the United States.