"With one hand, NATO agrees with us on joint partnership but with the other hand it takes the decision that it needs to defend itself," Lavrov said at a news conference in Moscow, quoted by the Interfax news agency.

"When is NATO more sincere?" Lavrov asked. "We have asked these questions and await answers. We think we have the right."

US diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks whistleblowing website and published in Western newspapers on Tuesday revealed that NATO extended an existing defence plan covering Poland to include Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Foreign ministry officials read some of the WikiLeaks documents and paid "special attention" to the report on NATO, Lavrov said.

A foreign ministry source on Tuesday had expressed puzzlement at the revelations, saying they contradicted a joint Russia-NATO declaration not to use force or threat of force against each other, signed at a November summit.

Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said at the summit last month that NATO and Russia had exorcised the ghosts of the past after they signed a declaration saying that they did not pose a threat to each other.

earlier related report
NATO: Cooperation with Russia unaffected by WikiLeaks
Brussels (AFP) Dec 9, 2010 - NATO's renewed ties with Russia are moving forward despite leaked diplomatic cables showing the alliance has plans to defend Baltic states from any Russian attack, NATO's chief said Thursday.

"We do not consider Russia a threat to NATO nor does NATO pose a threat to Russia," said the Western alliance's secretary general Anders Fogh Rasmussen.

"On the contrary, we want to develop a true strategic partnership between NATO and Russia," he told reporters after meeting with European Union defence ministers in Brussels.

Rasmussen refused to confirm the authenticity of the secret US diplomatic cables published by the whistleblower website WikiLeaks, saying NATO does not comment on "alleged leaked classified documents."

The NATO chief recalled that the 28-nation military club, which includes Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, held a major summit with Russia in Lisbon last month when the Cold War rivals agreed to "enter a new stage" of cooperation.

NATO and Russia held a "very positive and very fruitful" meeting at ambassador level on Wednesday during which they agreed to begin work on a joint analysis of how to cooperate on a missile shield for Europe, he said.

"This is a clear demonstration that we want to move forward in our relationship and we want to preserve and maintain the positive spirit from Lisbon," Rasmussen said.

Russian experts are expected to come to Brussels in mid-December to work on the missile shield project, Moscow's envoy to NATO, Dmitry Rogozin, said on Tuesday.

Another major agreement to expand NATO's use of an Afghan war supply route through Russia was also "now a reality," Rasmussen said.

Russia agreed in Lisbon to allow the alliance to transport mine-resistant vehicles to Afghanistan and take non-lethal material into and out of the country. The previous deal only allowed one-way traffic to the warzone.

The US diplomatic memos show that an existing defence plan covering Poland was extended to include Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania after they lobbied for extra protection following Russia's war with Georgia in 2008.

A Russian foreign ministry source on Tuesday expressed puzzlement at the revelations, saying it contradicted a joint Russia-NATO declaration not to use force or threat of force against each other, signed at the November summit.

"Such publications raise many questions in Russia and leave us perplexed," the source said, quoted by the Interfax news agency.

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