Lavrov meeting in Sweden ATHENS 9.84
American and Russian diplomats meet in Sweden today in the midst of rising tensions around Ukraine, where Washington claims that they have “evidence” that Moscow is preparing to invade and pose a new threat. more painful sanctions.
Anthony Blinken and Sergei Lavrov will meet alongside a meeting in the Stockholm suburb of the fifty foreign ministers of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) member states.
One of the few international dialogue forums in which both the United States and Russia are members, the OSCE has been tasked with monitoring compliance with Russia’s annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea and the outbreak of war in eastern Ukraine in 2014. peace agreement.
Kiev and its Western allies have sounded the alarm since last month, stressing that Russian troops are gathering at Ukraine’s border and that a winter invasion is imminent.
Moscow, which has been accused of supporting pro-Russian separatists fighting the Ukrainian army, denies that it is preparing to launch an attack and accuses NATO of trying to arouse new tensions.
The tones rose even more yesterday.
During a meeting with the Atlantic Alliance in Riga, Anthony Blinken said he was “deeply concerned” by “evidence” that Russian President Vladimir Putin had “drawn up plans for major offensive operations against Ukraine”.
“We do not know if President Putin has decided to order an invasion.” But we know he will have the opportunity to do so very quickly if he decides to do so, he added.
The US Secretary of State insisted that diplomacy “is the only responsible way to resolve this potential crisis” and threatened retaliation with a “series of far-reaching economic measures” that Washington “held” and “did not use before”.
Moscow, for its part, responded to these allegations by claiming that Ukraine was gathering tens of thousands of troops in the eastern part of the country.
Yesterday, President Putin called for “agreements” that would prevent NATO from expanding to the east and the development of its weapons system near Russia’s borders, and proposed “in-depth negotiations” on the issue.
Following NATO’s expansion into large parts of Eastern Europe, following the fall of the former Soviet Union, the idea that one day Ukraine could become a member is unbearable for Russia, even if it seeks membership. of Kiev is so far dead letter.
Also yesterday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky demanded that direct talks be held with Moscow on the separatist war in Donbass, in eastern Ukraine, which has claimed the lives of some 13,000 people.
Prior to his talks with Lavrov, Blinken will have a four-on-four meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart, Dmitry Kuleba, also in Stockholm.
This OSCE meeting, although planned for a long time, is taking place at a “critical moment”, the US ambassador to the international organization, Michael Carpenter, said.
In addition to Ukraine, recent weeks have been marked by the migration crisis on Belarus’s borders with EU member states and the temporary resurgence of clashes between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces, both members of the OSCE.
The EU reached an agreement on Wednesday to impose new sanctions on Belarus, and the United States is expected to follow “very soon”, according to the Foreign Ministry.
The meeting of Foreign Ministers is not expected to lead to the adoption of an important text, as there is no case of unanimity.
Source: RES-EAP