Russia insists on “the withdrawal of all United States forces and weapons deployed in Central and Eastern Europe, in Southeastern Europe and in the Baltic States” and also expects proposals from Westerners aimed at their “renouncement of any future expansion of the NATO”.
Although Moscow applauded the willingness of the United States to carry out “in-depth work on arms control and risk reduction measures”, this cannot take place if Russia’s main demands are not also on the table.
Likewise, Russia reaffirmed, in the same document, that it does not plan to invade Ukraine, despite having deployed more than 100,000 Russian soldiers on the borders with Ukraine, which made Westerners fear that the country is preparing an imminent military operation against Kiev. .
“No ‘Russian invasion’ of Ukraine is planned, as US officials and their allies have been announcing since last fall,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
For his part, US President Joe Biden said there are now signs that Russia plans to invade Ukraine in the coming days and is preparing a pretext to justify it, after Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian rebels exchanged fire in the eastern Ukraine.
The Kremlin accused Biden of stoking the tension and published a strong letter accusing Washington of ignoring its security demands and threatening unspecified “military-technical measures.” Moscow also expelled the number two official from the US embassy.
The early-morning exchanges of fire between Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists stoked alarm, with Western officials long warning that Moscow might try to create a pretext for an invasion saying they believed such a scenario was now unfolding.
“We have reason to believe that they are involved in a false flag operation in order to have an excuse to enter. All the indications we have is that they are prepared to go to Ukraine and attack Ukraine,” Biden said. “My feeling is that this will happen in the next few days.” Biden ordered Secretary of State Antony Blinken to change his travel plans at the last minute to speak at a United Nations Security Council meeting on Ukraine. Blinken told the Council that Russia planned to fabricate a pretext for an invasion in the coming days.
“This could be a violent event that Russia will provoke in Ukraine, or an outrageous accusation that Russia will launch against the Ukrainian government,” Blinken said. “It could be a fabricated terrorist bombing inside Russia, the fabricated discovery of a mass grave, a drone attack on civilians,” he said.
Source: Ambito
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