The United States and NATO announced this Wednesday that they have delivered their written proposals to Moscow to dissuade it from carrying out an eventual invasion of Ukraine, in the midst of the crisis over the Russian military deployment on the border with Ukraine.
The person in charge of delivering the document was the United States ambassador in Moscow, John Sullivan, who took it in person to the Russian Foreign Ministry, where he was received by the deputy minister, Alexandr Grushkó.
The document, prepared in coordination with Ukraine and the rest of NATO’s European allies, has had the approval of the president, Joe Biden, and it addresses some of the concerns that Moscow has shown publicly in recent weeks regarding of security.
It describes areas in which the United States sees potential for progress in the negotiation with Russia, such as in terms of arms control, transparency and stability, as Blinken explained, in a press conference reported by US media.
“If Russia reduces its aggression towards Ukraine, stops its inflammatory rhetoric and approaches discussions on the future of security in Europe in a spirit of reciprocity, we are ready to move forward where there is communication and cooperation,” said the Secretary of State.
Furthermore, he warns that Moscow’s demand that Ukraine be excluded from NATO is not acceptable. “We will maintain NATO’s open-door principle,” said Blinken, who in turn reported the arrival this week on Ukrainian soil of more “defensive military assistance.”
Blinken has reiterated that Washington and its partners and allies are “ready” to hold Russia “accountable” in the event of an invasion of Ukraine, with actions that would entail “significant costs” to its economy, such as controls on exports from the country. Eurasian.
Similarly, he has emphasized the unity of the United States and its partners to “support what must be inviolable principles to achieve stability and prosperity” in the coming years.
In addition, he has guaranteed that the allies are “adapting measures” so that the global energy supply is not affected “in case Russia wants to play with the gas supply” and to mitigate a possible rise in prices.
Finally, he has stressed that Russia “has to choose” which path to take and has insisted that if it chooses “aggression” these actors are “united throughout the world.”
STOLTENBERG SEES ROOM FOR DIALOGUE ON SECURITY
On the other hand, the other major actor in this crisis, NATO, has also transmitted its proposals this Wednesday, as confirmed to Europa Press by a spokesman for the Atlantic Alliance, minutes before the secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, confirmed this step in a news conference.
After having held a meeting with Moscow on the sidelines of the NATO-Russia Council on December 12, the Norwegian politician has indicated that the allies are ready to sit down again in front of Moscow to discuss security areas in which the Alliance and Russia can benefit each other.
The proposal has been “negotiated and agreed” by the 30 allies, said Stoltenberg, who has insisted that NATO is ready to discuss with Moscow the reduction of nuclear weapons, the control of short and medium-range missiles or greater transparency on military maneuvers.
The NATO secretary general has stressed that the progress of this process now “depends on whether there is a willingness to compromise in good faith and try to sit down and find common ground.”
Stoltenberg has made it clear that he is ready to listen to Russian concerns, but there will be no giving in to demands that NATO not expand into Eastern Europe. “We have made it clear that we do not compromise the right of any nation to apply to join (NATO),” he said.
If Moscow does not listen to this proposal and advances in the confrontation, NATO’s political chief has indicated that the organization is prepared to deploy its immediate response forces “in a matter of days”, made up of 5,000 troops of different nationalities. As he has confirmed, NATO could resort to them in case of crisis, under the decision of the North Atlantic Council.
Thus, Stoltenberg has stressed that the Atlantic Alliance has increased the preparation of these response forces, a framework in which Washington confirmed on Tuesday that it would provide 8,400 soldiers in response to Russia’s actions.
Tensions around Ukraine have worsened in recent weeks due to the increase in Russian troops deployed in the area, an issue that the international community sees as a threat of invasion. The Russian government, however, has rejected such accusations.
