Putin argues that as new NATO members have not even signed the treaty so far, an imbalance in the presence of NATO and Russian armed forces in Europe creates a real threat, and an unpredictable situation for Russia.Annual Address to the Federal Assembly , 26 April 2007, Kremlin, Moscow NATO members said they would refuse to ratify the treaty, until Russia complied with its 1999 commitments made in Istanbul, whereby Russia should remove troops and military equipment from Moldova and Georgia. Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, was quoted as saying in response that "Russia has long since fulfilled all its Istanbul obligations relevant to CFE".Lavrov Announced Conditions of Resuming CFE Observance , 3 December 2007, Izvestia.ru
