The American side received a written response from Russia to the proposals for security guarantees. Writes about it TASS with reference to a representative of the US State Department.
According to him, Washington plans to continue close consultations on the issue of de-escalation with its allies and partners.
We are ready to confirm that we have received a written response from Russia. The United States is fully committed to dialogue with the Russian Federation on security issues and will continue consultations with allies and partners, including Ukraine
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Washington Concerns
On January 26, the United States handed over to Moscow a written response to the proposals for security guarantees. It was brought to the Russian Foreign Ministry by US Ambassador John Sullivan and presented to Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko. In addition, NATO’s written response was handed over to the Russian ambassador in Brussels.
In this document, in addition to setting out our key principles, in addition to setting out our concerns, the concerns of our allies and partners about things that Russia has done that we believe undermine security and stability, we also describe areas where we believe that we can work together to develop security for everyone, including Russia
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov noted that so far only secondary questions have been answered from the American side. He explained that the proposals put forward by Moscow on security guarantees are “not an ultimatum and there is nothing transcendent in them, Moscow just wants to be dealt with honestly.” However, as the diplomat said, the West “rips out” from the OSCE provisions on the indivisibility of security only what is beneficial to it.
In December 2021, the Russian Foreign Ministry, in turn, published draft agreements between the Russian Federation and NATO and the United States on security guarantees. The document says that the United States should not create military bases in the territories of the former USSR countries that are not members of NATO. The United States also discouraged the use of their infrastructure for any military activity and the development of bilateral military cooperation with them.
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Signal to the West
The silence of Russian President Vladimir Putin in response to the US and NATO letter on security guarantees is a signal to Western countries. About it informs Japan Times, citing analysts.
The publication noted that since the last annual press conference, the President of Russia no longer commented on the situation associated with the growth of military tension in Ukraine. The media suggested that this was some kind of warning.
The publication asked for clarification from Tatyana Stanova, an expert at the Carnegie Moscow Center, who has been engaged in operational analysis of the political process in Russia for many years. According to her, Putin’s “silence” has three possible explanations.
Having laid out his tough stance late last year and demanded immediate concessions from the West, Putin may not see the point in repeating himself, leaving petty matters to his diplomats. It is also possible that he sees a glimmer of hope for a deal and does not want to talk about it yet. Or he has already decided on a military course of action and is preparing to implement it, waiting for an official response
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Session on Ukraine
On January 31, the UN Security Council voted to hold a meeting on the situation around Ukraine. The meeting was initiated by the United States. According to information RIA NewsWashington wanted to discuss at the Security Council level Russia’s “aggression” towards Ukraine, as well as the “build-up of the Russian military presence” on the Ukrainian border.
To hold a meeting of the UN Security Council, the initiator must put the issue to a vote. The meeting will take place if it is supported by 9 of the 15 members of the UN Security Council.
The request to convene the meeting was made by US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield. As Thomas-Greenfield stated, the decision was made after several weeks of “close consultations” with Ukraine and partners in the Security Council. According to the American side, the meeting should discuss an issue “of decisive importance for international peace and security.”
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