The US administration has received a written response from Russia to its proposals for a de-escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. This was reported by the State Department in Washington. The ministry does not want to say anything about the content.
“It is not productive to negotiate in public, so we leave it to Russia to discuss its answer if it wishes,” said a ministry spokeswoman. “We remain fully committed to resolving these issues through dialogue and we remain in close consultation with our allies and partners, including Ukraine,” it said.
The Russian response reached Washington ahead of another telephone interview between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov. That meeting is scheduled for Tuesday.
The US administration had provided Moscow with a written response last week about Russia’s security concerns. In it, Washington had failed to respond to Russia’s demand that NATO not expand further east, but it also failed to halt diplomatic efforts to avoid conflict.
Recognition of security interests
The West accuses Russia of gathering more than 100,000 soldiers on the border with Ukraine in view of a possible military intervention. The Kremlin assures it has no intention of attacking, but demands an acknowledgment of its security interests. The Russians are not only pushing for guarantees that Ukraine will never join NATO, they also want a withdrawal of NATO troops from member states in Eastern Europe. That is unmentionable for the US and NATO, but they leave the door open for talks about disarmament or the mutual limitation of military exercises.
A first public session on the conflict took place on Monday in a particularly tense atmosphere at the UN Security Council in New York. US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield emphasized the size of the Russian force. “This is the largest troop mobilization in decades, and right now Russia is sending even more troops and weapons,” she said.
Russian Ambassador Vasily Nebenzya criticized Washington’s “megaphone diplomacy” and said the Americans are stirring up “war hysteria”. “The discussion of an imminent threat is provocative in itself. They are almost calling for it. They want it to happen,” Nebenzya said. The diplomat again denied that Moscow is planning an invasion.
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