The Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelensky, proposed this Saturday to meet with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, at a time of growing fears of a Russian invasion of the former Soviet republic.
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“I don’t know what the Russian president wants, that’s why I propose that we meet,” Zelensky declared at a security conference in Munich, where he took the opportunity to request a meeting of the UN Security Council in view of the military escalation around Ukraine. .
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“In the coming weeks it is necessary to seek new security guarantees for Ukraine with the countries of the Security Council and with the participation of Europe, Germany and Turkey,” Zelensky said.
In his speech in Munich, Zelensky called for establishing a “clear and feasible” timetable for Ukraine’s accession to NATOa military alliance of the United States and major European powers.
That accession would represent a red line for Russia, which precisely demands guarantees that NATO will never admit Ukraine and that it will not be reinforced on its eastern flank.
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The Ukrainian president asked if the international community has learned anything from two world wars and urged urgent action to repair the system’s failures before a third begins.
“Ukraine longs for peace. Europe longs for peace. Russia says it does not want to attack. There is someone who is lying, ”she asserted, insisting on the need for a review of the current global security architecture.
Zelensky urged Western powers to unrestrictedly defend their country against a possible Russian invasion and called for abandoning the strategy of “appeasing” Russia.
“Everyone must understand that Ukraine is not asking for charitable contributions. It is your contribution to the security of Europe and the world, where Ukraine has been the shield for eight years,” she added.
The president was referring to the outbreak of the conflict with pro-Russian separatists in the east of the country and Russia’s annexation of the Crimean peninsula in 2014.
Since the Munich Security Conference, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has called for “unity” among Western allies, and US Vice President Kamala Harris has said NATO will strengthen in Eastern Europe in the event of a Russian attack on Ukraine.
Along the same lines, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg reaffirmed the “unfailing” commitment of the members of the Atlantic Alliance to protect each other, and assured Russia that it will only have “more NATO” if it seeks to have “less NATO”. “Moscow is trying to turn history back and recreate its sphere of influence,” Stoltenberg charged.
For his part, the head of Chinese diplomacy, Wang Yi, insisted yesterday that Russia’s concerns about Ukraine “must be respected” and advocated multilateralism as a solution to conflicts.
INTERNATIONAL WRITING
*With information from AFP and EFE
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