On the eve of the opening of talks on the crisis of the concentration of Russian troops on the border with Ukraine, representatives of the Russian and US governments expressed little hope that the talks would bring practical results.
American and Russian diplomats will hold a meeting on the crisis in Geneva, Switzerland, this Monday (10). For Wednesday (12), a Russia-NATO (Western military alliance) debate is scheduled in Brussels, and for Thursday (13), a conference involving Moscow, Washington and leaders of other European countries in Vienna.
However, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told the state news agency RIA that the talks may not go beyond the first meeting. “I can’t rule out anything, this is an entirely possible scenario and Americans… should have no illusions about it,” he said. “Naturally, we will not make concessions under pressure,” he added.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also expressed skepticism in an interview with CNN. “It is difficult to envision real progress, rather than speaking, amidst an atmosphere of (military) escalation, with a gun pointed at Ukraine’s head. So if we’re really going to make progress, we’re going to have to see a (Russian military) slowdown, with Russia pulling back from the threat it currently poses to Ukraine,” he commented.
US Presidents Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke twice in December about the crisis in Ukraine, via videoconference and over the phone. In both contacts, Biden threatened to apply strong sanctions if Moscow invaded the neighboring country. Putin responded with a warning that such measures could lead to a complete severing of diplomatic ties between the two countries.
Moscow claims it is aimed only at self-defense. Ukraine estimates that around 100,000 Russian troops are already concentrated on the border and fears an invasion along the lines of the annexation of Crimea and separatist movements in the Donbass region, both in 2014.
Between the two talks between Biden and Putin, Russia released a draft of an agreement it intends to negotiate with the Americans, which includes demands such as a veto of a possible entry of Ukraine in NATO and the return to US and Russian territories of nuclear weapons. already deployed in other countries, which would mean removing the weapons that Washington stores in Europe. The United States considers these conditions unacceptable.
The crisis has taken on new contours in recent days, with the strong repression of protests in Kazakhstan. Russia has sent troops to the country as part of a security alliance between six former Soviet republics.
Blinken told ABC broadcaster that the United States has “real doubts about why it was necessary to convene this organization that Russia leads and of which it is a part.” “These are things that the government of Kazakhstan should deal with on its own and in a way that respects (people’s) rights,” he argued.
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