Attack on Ukraine ?: USA: “Evidence” of Russian aggression plans

Attack on Ukraine?
USA: “Evidence” of Russian aggression plans

The situation in the Ukraine conflict continues to worsen. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks of “evidence” that would support Russia’s plans for “military operations” against Ukraine. Moscow continues to deny its warlike intent – and heavily reproaches NATO.

Tensions are escalating in the Ukraine conflict: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Russia of planning “substantial aggressive steps against Ukraine”. There is “evidence” of these plans, Blinken said after a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Riga, Latvia, and threatened Moscow with severe US economic sanctions in the event of an attack. Blinkens’ meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was planned for Thursday.

The Russian plans ranged from “efforts to destabilize Ukraine from within to large-scale military operations,” said Blinken. “We don’t know if President (Vladimir) Putin made the decision to invade. We do know, however, that he will create the conditions to do so in a short space of time, should he choose to do so.”

“We made it clear to the Kremlin that we would react decisively,” said Blinken. This also includes “a number of effective economic measures that we have so far refrained from in the past”. The NATO allies would also “ensure that Ukraine has the means to defend itself”.

Moscow denies warlike intent

At the end of the meeting in Riga, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that NATO had a “wide range of options” to respond to a possible attack by Russia on Ukraine. Above all, he named economic and financial sanctions in the individual member states.

At the same time, Stoltenberg referred to NATO’s reaction to the Russian annexation of the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula of Crimea in 2014 and the fighting in eastern Ukraine: “This has led to the greatest reinforcement of our collective defense since the end of the Cold War,” emphasized Stoltenberg. At that time, the alliance stationed “combat-ready units” in Poland and the Baltic states, increased their presence in the Black Sea and increased air surveillance. Stoltenberg affirmed that Russia had “no veto” in the event of Ukraine joining NATO.

According to the Ukrainian government, Russia has deployed troops, tanks and other heavy equipment on the border with Ukraine for the second time this year. The West fears that the situation of 2014 could repeat itself when Russia annexed Crimea. Moscow denies any warlike intent. Blinken will meet his Russian colleague Lavrov on Thursday on the sidelines of the Organization for Security and Cooperation (OSCE) meeting in Stockholm to discuss the tense situation on the Russian-Ukrainian border.

Ukraine wants to speak to Russia

Before the meeting, Lavrov spoke sharply towards NATO: the member states of the alliance were pursuing “destructive policies” and trying to “draw Ukraine into their sphere of influence and turn it into an anti-Russian country,” said the Russian foreign minister. The West wanted to “dictate to Moscow how the Russian armed forces should behave on their own territory,” Lavrov criticized. Moscow accuses the West of supplying Kiev with weapons and holding military exercises in the Black Sea.

Moscow also accused Kiev of concentrating troops in the east of the country. 125,000 soldiers, “half of the Ukrainian troops”, are in the area near the Russian border, said a Russian Foreign Office spokeswoman. The Ukrainian head of state Volodymyr Selenskyj called for direct talks with the Kremlin to end the conflict in eastern Ukraine. “We have to say sincerely: We will not be able to end the war without direct talks with Russia,” Zelenskyi told the Ukrainian parliament. The West accuses Russia of supporting pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine, but Moscow denies this.

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