Russia has expressed its lack of optimism That the United States will meet its security demands In order to defuse the Ukrainian crisis, a Russian official ruled out his country’s invasion of the western neighbor.
This came after an American talk about what it described as “global risks” if Russia attacks Ukraine, while Kiev affirmed its commitment to diplomacy, and waved reciprocally if Moscow decided to confront.
Today, Thursday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that the United States did not respond “decisively” to all the provisions of the security guarantees proposals.
Lavrov added to reporters that the American response includes positions that allow the start of a serious dialogue on secondary issues, but he stressed that there is no positive response from Washington to the main issue in the Russian proposals, which is the issue of NATO’s non-expansion towards the east and the deployment of offensive weapons that could threaten Russian territory. .
The United States and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) yesterday evening delivered their responses to Russia regarding security guarantees.
The Russian minister stressed that his country will send an inquiry to Washington and Western countries about the reasons for ignoring its commitments regarding the indivisibility of security, pointing out that “the content of the American response to our proposals regarding security guarantees will soon be published in the public.”
Lavrov said that President Vladimir Putin will take a decision on the next steps after studying and agreeing with the relevant ministries regarding the Western response to the Russian proposals related to security guarantees requested by Moscow.
And the US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, said that his country had submitted its written response to Russia regarding the security guarantees demanded by Moscow, and that his country would not publish the response publicly because it needed to open a space for diplomacy, as he described it.
The White House said any sanctions the United States might impose on Russia when it invaded Ukraine would include the personal interests of Putin and the Russian leadership.
Russia had submitted its proposals on security and security guarantees in Europe to Washington in late December, and demanded a written response to its proposals.
global risks
For his part, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi assured his US counterpart – in a phone call today – that Russia’s rational security concerns should be taken seriously.
In a statement, the Chinese Foreign Ministry confirmed that, during the call, Wang called on all parties to remain calm and refrain from escalating tension.
In turn, Blinken assured his Chinese counterpart that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine threatens global security and economy, as US State Department spokesman Ned Price said.
Price said the minister “stressed the global security and economic risks that a new Russian aggression against Ukraine could pose, and emphasized that de-escalation and diplomacy were the responsible way forward.”
Washington and its European allies accuse Moscow of preparing to invade Ukraine after mobilizing 100,000 troops near its neighbor’s borders, while Russia denies any invasion plan, but demands NATO to reject Ukraine’s membership, a request rejected by the West.
Unacceptable
Amid the exchange of threats between Russia and the West, Alexei Zaitsev, Deputy Director of Information and Press at the Russian Foreign Ministry, said that his country had repeatedly stressed that the idea of a war between the Russian and Ukrainian peoples was unacceptable.
Zaitsev said, in a press conference today, that Russia does not intend to take military action against Ukraine, indicating that what he described as “external forces that run Ukraine” think differently.
The Russian media official indicated that the West is escalating the situation in Ukraine, expressing hope that NATO countries will stop fueling the conflict in eastern Ukraine or interfering in Kiev’s internal affairs.
He added that stopping NATO countries from interfering in Ukraine’s internal affairs would enable the parties in this country to resolve existing disputes through direct dialogue.
“We will reciprocate.”
From Denmark, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Thursday that Russia is likely to stick to the diplomatic track in its dealings with Ukraine and the West for at least two weeks after talks in Paris to calm the situation.
He added – at a press conference in Copenhagen after a meeting with his Danish counterpart Jeppe Kofod – that “the number of Russian forces near our borders is increasing day by day, but we will not allow Putin to achieve his goals, and we will confront that diplomatically and economically.”
Kuleba stressed that Kiev is not planning any offensive actions, and that it is committed to diplomacy, but if Russia decides to confront, “we will respond in kind.”
Russian mobilization
On the ground, the Russian Defense Ministry announced that it had completed the transfer of advanced “Sukhoi-35” (SU-35S) fighters to Belarus as part of an inspection and training operation carried out by the Russian Air Force.
The ministry published a video clip on its website documenting the redeployment of advanced fighters and their landing at the airports of the Central Military District, noting that the military exercises will be carried out in two phases until February 20.
A photo published by the Russian Ministry of Defense of the taking off of a Sukhoi-35 aircraft participating in military exercises with Belarus (Anatolia)In turn, the Belarusian Ministry of Defense said that the joint exercises with Russia are of a defensive nature and do not represent a threat to Europe and neighboring countries, and that the Russian forces will leave after the end of the exercises.
In a related context, the head of the ruling United Russia party called President Vladimir Putin to provide the separatist republics of Lugansk and Donetsk with the necessary military supplies to curb any aggression, as he put it.
Viktor Vodolatsky, deputy head of the State Duma’s Committee on CIS Affairs, said that any attack by Ukrainian forces would be met with the transfer of weapons within hours to troops in the republics of Lugansk and Donetsk.
For his part, Denis Pushilin, President of the self-proclaimed Donetsk Republic in southeastern Ukraine, welcomed Russian statements about the possibility of providing military support to the separatists in the Donbass region.
He added that he had intelligence information indicating the presence of military reinforcements for the Ukrainian army away from the eyes of the monitors of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
Canadian support
For his part, Ukrainian Defense Minister Alexei Rzhenkov announced the receipt of a third shipment of US weapons weighing about 80 tons, including Javelin anti-tank missiles.
In Canada, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said his country would provide an additional 340 million Canadian dollars (about $280 million) in military aid to Ukraine, including extending and expanding the training mission of the Ukrainian military to help deter war and thwart a “possible Russian invasion.”
Trudeau added, during a press conference yesterday, that Canada will send additional forces and will also provide support for cyber security, and will share intelligence information with Kiev “so that Ukraine can defend its sovereignty, security and territorial integrity.”
In a related development, sources said that the United States and its allies are in talks to deploy more forces in eastern European countries that are members of NATO, in a show of support with the increasing threat of Russia to Ukraine.
Turkish mediation
For his part, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said yesterday – in a television interview – that “it would be foolish for Russia to attack Ukraine.”
Erdogan added that if Moscow took such a step, his country would “do what is necessary as one of the NATO member states.”
He revealed that he invited President Putin to visit Turkey within the framework of the proposal to host the two sides to adopt the path of diplomacy and peace, indicating that he expected a response from Moscow.
