Real talks on security guarantees will begin only after Moscow receives an official written response from the US and NATO to its proposals. According to Izvestia’s interlocutor, who is familiar with the course of contacts, the meeting between Sergey Lavrov and Anthony Blinken, scheduled for January 21, implies “only a discussion” of the issue of guarantees.
“The negotiations between the Russian Federation and the United States on January 21 are, in fact, just a discussion,” an informed source familiar with the course of the consultations told Izvestia. – Real negotiations can begin only after Moscow receives a written answer – then decisions will be made. So far, we have not received such an answer.”
At the same time, Izvestia’s interlocutor emphasized that Moscow is not going to change its negotiating positions – “they are all set out on paper.” The Russian side advocates for everything to go quickly – this should not be “a process that will drag on for months and years.” Therefore, Moscow is actively urging the West to give it an official answer: according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, it expects to receive it “one of these days.”
In the 10 days since the beginning of the consultations, the level of representation has also changed. The negotiating marathon was opened on January 9 by the deputies of the heads of foreign affairs departments – Sergei Ryabkov and Wendy Sherman. Now the parties will be represented by the head of the Russian Foreign Ministry and the US Secretary of State. According to experts, this shows how seriously Moscow and Washington take the dialogue.
“These consultations could launch negotiations on European security, arms control and confidence-building measures,” Stefan Meister, head of the International Order and Democracy program at the German Council on Foreign Relations, told Izvestia. “I’m not sure, though, that the Russian side is interested in such a process — it wants guarantees now, and NATO/USA is unwilling to accept this ultimatum.”
On the other hand, according to the expert, the continuation of tension around Ukraine is also unprofitable for Russia. “The stock exchange is already reacting, and getting at least some confidence building measures, more attention from the US and arms control negotiations is not so bad,” Stefan Meister said.
Read more in the exclusive Izvestia article:
Preliminary tales: what Lavrov and Blinken will talk about in Geneva
Source: IZ
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
