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Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold new phone talks today with his US counterparts John Biden and France's Emmanuel Macron, at a time when, according to Washington, a war in Ukraine could break out "at any moment".
In the face of the threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine, which is presented as imminent, telephone talks on both sides of the Atlantic are intensifying in an attempt to resume dialogue. President Biden, who will be in residence at Camp David over the weekend, will speak with Vladimir Putin today following talks yesterday, Friday, between the chiefs of staff of their countries' armed forces. A phone call is also scheduled for today between the Russian president and his French counterpart.
We continue to see signs of Russian escalation, including the arrival of new forces on Ukraine's border, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan warned after a video conference of Western leaders. An invasion could take place at any time if Vladimir Putin gives the order for it, he added, asserting that it could even begin during the Beijing Olympics, which end on February 20.
According to him, such an attack is a very real possibility, but US intelligence agencies do not know whether the Russian president has made a final decision or not. No one knows whether a decision to act has been made, a NATO diplomat confirmed to AFP.
Blinken says he will have a phone call today with his Russian counterpart Lavrov
The US secretary of state said he will have a phone call today with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov in a last-ditch effort to prevent a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine. We continue to see worrying signs of Russian escalation, notably the arrival of new forces on Ukraine's border, Blinken said at a press conference today from Fiji, where he is visiting.If Russia is really interested in resolving this crisis, which it has created, through diplomacy and dialogue, we are ready to do so, Blinken said.
But this should be done in a context of de-escalation. So far, we only see escalation from Moscow's side, he added. This is a critical moment. We are prepared for anything that could happen, the US diplomatic chief warned.
Blinken assured once again that Washington and its allies would quickly impose severe sanctions on Russia if it invades Ukraine, which he said could now happen at any time. We don't know if President Putin has made up his mind, he said. But what we do know is that he has built up the capacity to be able to act at very short notice, the US secretary of state concluded.
Drastic sanctions
Biden's national security adviser reiterated that the West is prepared for all scenarios: unprecedented economic retaliation in the event of war, but also to continue to extend a diplomatic hand to continue negotiations with Moscow.
In anticipation, the Pentagon will send an additional 3,000 US troops to Poland in the coming days to reassure NATO allies. At the same time, US diplomatic chief Anthony Blinken assured his Ukrainian counterpart Dmitry Kuleba yesterday, Friday, of strong US support for Kiev.
Several series of talks in recent days have failed to de-escalate the crisis, which was triggered by the deployment in recent months of more than 100 troops on Ukraine's border.000 Russian soldiers with heavy weapons.
The allies are determined to jointly impose swift and drastic sanctions against Russia in the event of an attack, a spokesman for German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who is expected to visit Moscow next week, said in a Twitter message after a meeting of Western leaders. Like Paris, Berlin insists on the diplomatic route to move things toward a de-escalation.
Aerial bombings
The White House praised admirable Western unity in the face of what it sees as the most dangerous moment for Europe since the end of the Cold War thirty years ago. The Americans, who shared their intelligence analyses with their allies, outlined a dramatic scenario in the event of a Russian attack.
This would likely begin with aerial bombing and missile launches that could apparently kill civilians, White House adviser Jake Sullivan noted. It could also include a quick attack on Kiev.
The US, Canada or even Australia have called on their citizens to leave Ukraine as soon as possible. It is a very dangerous situation and, for your own safety, you should seek to leave Ukraine. The situation will become very unstable if there is a conflict, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison warned today.
Talks to no avail
Yesterday the Kremlin announced that talks held in Berlin on Thursday between representatives of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France had failed to produce any results.
These relate to the conflict that has raged in eastern Ukraine since 2014 between Russian-backed separatists and the Ukrainian army in which more than 14,000 people have died. Moscow, which has already annexed Crimea in 2014, denies any aggressive intent towards Ukraine, but has made a number of demands a precondition for any de-escalation, notably an assurance that Kiev will never join NATO. This cannot be accepted, the West judges.
While Emmanuel Macron made sure to secure Vladimir Putin's commitment on Monday that he would not fuel additional escalation of the crisis, Russia announced new military exercises on the border with Ukraine. The Russian navy is also conducting drills in the Black Sea, near the Crimean peninsula that Moscow annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
With information from APE-MPA
Contents of this article including associated images are belongs Cyprus Times
Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or Cyprus Times
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