By IRNA
Berlin : German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Monday expressed skepticism over plans for NATO expansion.
Speaking at a meeting of top German military commanders in Berlin, Merkel said that countries, involved in a regional conflict, could not become NATO members.
She was alluding to countries like Georgia and Ukraine which are pressing to become membership candidates at the upcoming NATO summit in Bucharest in early April.
The issue has become subject of a heated debate in the western military alliance as many NATO states are afraid of Russia’s reaction.
Moscow has warned of the NATO bid by Ukraine and Georgia, branding it a “provocation.”