NATO and Russia to meet again, edge towards regular talks

FILE PHOTO - A NATO flag flies at the Alliance's headquarters in Brussels, March 2, 2014. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - NATO envoys will hold a formal meeting with Russia on Thursday, their fourth since the 2014 crisis in Ukraine halted regular talks, although both sides continue to accuse each other of destabilising eastern Europe.

The NATO-Russia Council, the forum bringing together NATO ambassadors and Russia's top diplomat to the U.S.-led alliance, is seen as a way to prevent tensions escalating by explaining each other's positions, even when joint exercises and peacekeeping have been suspended.