Ukraine, winds of war. Biden to Putin: if you invade you will pay dearly. The Kremlin: US hysteria has reached a climax

The situation in Ukraine is rapidly deteriorating. At such serious levels that, according to diplomatic sources, Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio has called a coordination meeting at the Farnesina Crisis Unit for developments on the situation. The Foreign Ministry has invited the Italians to “temporarily leave the country with the commercial means available”.

Biden to Putin: if you invade you will pay dearly

American President Joe Biden spoke today with Russian President Vladimir Putin to clarify that if Russia invades Ukraine once again, “the United States and our allies will quickly impose a high cost on Russia” the White House said, underlining that “President Biden has urged President Putin to commit himself to reducing escalation and diplomacy.” Biden, the White House note continues, “reiterated that a further Russian invasion of Ukraine would produce great human suffering and damage Russia’s position”. Furthermore, Biden “was clear with Putin that the United States is ready for all scenarios” even if “it remains committed to diplomacy”.
After the interview, the foreign policy adviser of the Kremlin, Yury Ushakov, who spoke at a press conference about the “peak of hysteria” in America. Regarding the phone call, the Kremlin said the two leaders pledged to “continue” the dialogue. According to Ushakov, the Russian president has told the American president that he does not understand why the United States is spreading false news about Russia’s intention to invade Ukraine.

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The great escape
Sweden, Croatia, Denmark, Holland, Spain, Bulgaria, Israel, Montenegro, Morocco, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Iraq have also invited their citizens to leave Ukraine as soon as possible, advising against any trip to the country. Germany reduces the diplomatic staff at the embassy in Kiev, France advises against travel to the country, while the Dutch airline KLM has decided to stop flights.
Russia has begun to reduce its diplomatic staff in Ukraine and the United States orders what was officially said yesterday: the evacuation of the embassy from Kiev is underway.

Russian ships in the Black Sea
On the chessboard, now even the Russians admit that they are moving. But they talk about exercises. Large-scale maneuvers in the Black Sea with more than 30 Russian Navy ships in the midst of the Ukrainian crisis. According to the Tass agency, which reports what was made known by the information service of the Black Sea fleet, units “of various classes” of this fleet and others are involved. “The ships, and the coastal defense troops, of the Black Sea fleet have set sail from Sevastopol and Novorossiysk for exercises under the supervision of the commander of the Black Sea fleet, Admiral Igor Osipov.” The declared objective is “to defend the coast of the Crimean peninsula, the bases of the Black Sea fleet, economic infrastructure from any military threats”.

Moscow: US submarine intercepted in Russian waters and removed
A US Navy submarine of the Virginia type was intercepted in Russian territorial waters, in the Pacific fleet exercise area. This was reported by Tass citing the Russian Defense Ministry, adding that the submarine ignored the request to leave Russian waters and that it left following the use of “appropriate means”. The Russian defense ministry summoned the US embassy’s military attaché in relation to the incident and delivered a letter stating that the submarine has committed a “serious violation of international standards”.

The USA: war more and more probable
While waiting for Biden’s phone call to Putin, the US State Department issued a very worrying statement: “War is increasingly probable.” At the same time, the Americans withdrew “almost all the remaining soldiers in Ukraine”.

Macron’s mediation
Today, French President Macron is attempting mediation again, having had a long telephone conversation with Putin: an hour and 40 minutes of conversation. “A sincere dialogue is not compatible with an escalation of tension”, he limited himself to commenting on the number one of the Elysée.
Previously, it was the turn of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to hold an interview with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. “The road to diplomacy is open,” he said, “but it requires a de-escalation on the part of Moscow and a Russian commitment to negotiate in good faith.” If Moscow were to continue along the path of aggression and invade Ukraine, a “resolute, massive and united transatlantic response” would result. After the phone call, French President Emmanuel Macron will have talks today with Joe Biden, Olaf Scholz and Volodymyr Zelensky, leaders of the United States, Germany and Ukraine.

Kiev is organizing itself for the emergency
Meanwhile, Kiev is preparing for possible invasion scenarios. “The city services are working to prevent an emergency situation of a military nature. Kiev is a large metropolis and has an extensive and complex infrastructure of crucial support, the stable operation of which in an emergency situation is perhaps the most important task ».
According to a note, the mayor of Kiev, Vitaly Klichko, according to whom “an evacuation plan from the capital has been approved”, with the “number of necessary means and safe areas to accommodate the transferred people”. Klichko spoke of “fuel reserves” and “electric generators installed to operate continuously in an emergency situation”.

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Zelensky: don’t panic, everything under control
Despite the preventive maneuvers, the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, has been trying to convey calm since yesterday. Ukrainian newspapers report his statements in which he explains to his fellow citizens that the ongoing flight of Westerners means nothing and that it is not known whether they are simply reacting to a bluff, since “nothing has changed on the ground”. Also today, observing the military exercises near Crimea, the peninsula that Russia annexed by taking it away from Ukraine in 2014, Zelensky explained that “we are not afraid, we do not panic, everything is under control”.

Orban: wave of refugees if Russia invades
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban warned that a Russian invasion of Ukraine could push hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees to flee across the border to his country. The right-wing leader, speaking in an annual speech that kicked off his political campaign for the April 3 elections this year, has called for a peaceful solution to mounting tensions. While calling for a resolution of tensions through dialogue, Orban said he was against the EU’s plans to use sanctions against Russia as a deterrent. “Sanctions, punitive policies, conferences or any other kind of arrogance on the part of the great powers are out of the question.”

Salvini: avoiding a military escalation
In Italy, Matteo Salvini returns to speak, the Italian politician considered closest to Russia, together with the five stars. In a tweet, the leader of the League writes: «About 30 billion cubic meters of Russian gas are destined for the Italian market, via Ukraine. Mitigating tensions and avoiding a military escalation is a question of national security for our country “.

Di Maio: away non-essential personnel
but the embassy remains fully operational
After the meeting of the Farnesina Crisis Unit, the Foreign Minister, Luigi Di Maio, explained: “We have decided as a precaution to invite all Italian citizens present in Ukraine to return by commercial means and we have also invited to postpone the travel to Ukraine. Another provision made is to bring back all non-essential personnel from our diplomatic headquarters in Kiev. The embassy remains fully operational. We all work to avoid escalation. Italy fully recognizes the territorial integrity of Ukraine and recognizes the right of all sovereign states to determine their own alliances. Obviously, we are keeping a channel of dialogue open with Moscow. We are all working for a diplomatic solution ». The Crisis Unit also indicates the emergency number to reach it in case of need: +380503102111.

Gentiloni: negotiate but the red line must not be crossed
«#Ukraine means” on the edge “. Here, that limit must not be exceeded. Negotiating, talking to each other, working to reduce tensions, avoid provocations. But in the heart of Europe there is a red line »writes the EU Commissioner for Economic Affairs Paolo Gentiloni in a tweet.