❌ “They Deceived Us!” — Putin’s Favorite Lie About NATO’s Eastward Expansion

This latest outburst is part of a long-standing Kremlin myth: that NATO allegedly “tricked” Russia, violating solemn Western promises never to expand eastward.

But here’s the reality:
There was no such legal promise. No treaty. No signed guarantees. No written commitment.
Only a single oral remark made under a specific context — and even that was later reversed.

Let’s unpack the facts.

📜 What really happened in 1990?

In February 1990, during talks on German reunification, U.S. Secretary of State James Baker told Mikhail Gorbachev:

“Not one inch eastward.”

But:

1. It was an offhand comment, not a formal pledge.

2. It referred only to East Germany, not Eastern Europe.

3. Just one month later, Baker walked back his words.

4. The Soviet Union never demanded any written guarantee — and received none.

👉 Source: National Security Archive, GWU, 2017

🧾 Any actual documents?

Yes — and none prohibit NATO expansion.

📄 The “2+4 Treaty” (Sept 12, 1990)

Signed by both Germanies and the Four Powers (US, UK, USSR, France), this treaty governed reunification.

It includes no clause restricting NATO’s future enlargement.
📌 Treaty on the Final Settlement with Respect to Germany (CVCE)

🧠 What did Gorbachev say?

“The topic of NATO expansion was not discussed at all. It was not raised then or later. It wasn’t an issue.”
— Mikhail Gorbachev, Russia Beyond, 2014

Although he later wavered under political pressure, this was his official position:
No binding promises were made to the Soviet Union.

🇷🇺 What did Russia actually sign?

In 1997, under President Yeltsin, Russia signed the NATO–Russia Founding Act, which clearly stated:

“States are free to choose their own means of ensuring security, including the right to join alliances.”

📌 NATO–Russia Founding Act, 1997 (official text)

Putin knows this. He’s lying deliberately.

📆 Who joined NATO — and when?

• 1999: Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic

• 2004: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Romania, Bulgaria

• 2009–2020: Albania, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Finland

All joined voluntarily, following democratic processes.
No treaty was broken in the process.

🤡 Why does Putin lie?

Since his infamous Munich speech in 2007, Putin has used the “betrayal by the West” myth to:

• Justify wars (Georgia, Crimea, Ukraine)

• Paint Russia as a “victim”

• Distract from Moscow’s failures

• Demonize NATO for domestic consumption

There is no legal basis for the myth — only a political propaganda weapon.

🧨 Conclusion

• ❌ No guarantees were made.

• 🧾 No binding documents exist.

• 🇷🇺 Russia signed agreements affirming NATO’s open-door policy.

• 🤥 Putin’s narrative is a deliberate lie.

Putin is not a deceived strategist.
He’s a compulsive manipulator who weaponizes fiction to excuse aggression.