No grandiloquent announcement, no photo of smiles on the lips and friendly handshakes, the atmosphere remained tense in Geneva. Yet across the lines, both Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his US counterpart Antony Blinken, in separate press conferences after their talks, let a glimmer of optimism slide over the situation. around the Ukrainian border. The warnings from both sides were of course repeated, firmly.
Sergei Lavrov claimed that Washington promised to “respond next week in writing” to Russian requirements. Antony Blinken for his part spoke “ideas presented in writing”. After which, a new contact between the two ministers could take place. “I don’t know if we are on the right track, I will know that when we have an answer”, Lavrov added, before assuring that Russia had no “never, ever, anywhere threatened the Ukrainian people”. To which Antony Blinken replied a little later, insisting that he “there are facts”, in particular the deployment of masses of Russian troops on the Ukrainian border, or the invasion and annexation of Crimea in 2014, which justify the concerns of the West. But for Moscow, it’s the Ukrainian power in place, “russophobe” who is to blame for the current tension, and also NATO, guilty, according to Lavrov, of regarding Ukraine as “belonging to its area of influence”.
Beyond these icy statements, both Lavrov and Blinken tried to bring the level of tension down a notch. Sergei Lavrov stressed that he and his American counterpart were “agree that a reasonable dialogue (was) necessary” so that “the emotion falls”, while Mr. Blinken hailed “frank and substantial discussions” and did not rule out the possibility of finding a way to “respond to everyone’s concerns”. While warning that there would be a response even in the event of aggression “non-military” of Russia against Ukraine. The US Secretary of State, in response to a question, even raised the possibility of a new summit between Presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin in the event of progress on Ukraine. “We weren’t expecting a major breakthrough today, but I think we are now on the right path to understanding everyone’s concerns and positions,” he said to conclude his press conference which followed the meeting held in one of the palaces on the shores of Lake Geneva.
Intense diplomatic ballet
Sergei Lavrov and Antony Blinken, who know each other well, shook hands around 10 a.m. before getting to the heart of the matter. This meeting was the last pas de deux of an intense diplomatic ballet, Washington suspecting Moscow of wanting to invade Ukraine, which the Kremlin denies while maintaining some 100,000 soldiers along its neighbor’s border.
In front of the flags of the two countries, the two seasoned diplomats and their teams found themselves in a conference room of the President Wilson hotel, seated at two long tables – seven people on each side – covered with white tablecloths and decorated with small bouquets purple orchids.
Less than twenty minutes before the start of the meeting, Russia let it be known from Moscow that it wanted the withdrawal of NATO foreign troops from Romania and Bulgaria as part of a treaty which it demands for a de-escalation of the Ukrainian crisis.
Antony Blinken arrived on the shores of Lake Geneva after a quick tour of Kiev, to reassure Ukraine of Western support, then to Berlin, with his counterparts from Germany, France and the United Kingdom to reaffirm the solidity of the allied front. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson echoed US threats of retaliation by warning Russia should expect costs “considerable and serious” in the event of military aggression by Ukraine.
Updated at 2:45 p.m. after the end of the meeting and statements that followed