Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken are likely to hold new talks next week. This was announced on Sunday, January 30, by the Deputy Head of the State Department, Victoria Nuland, on the CBS television channel.
She also noted that in the United States they see signs of the Russian Federation, which indicate an interest in discussing US responses on security guarantees.
“We have seen some signs that the Russians are interested in engaging on these proposals, including the fact that Secretary of State Blinken and Foreign Minister Lavrov are likely to talk in the coming week,” Nuland said.
The Russian Foreign Ministry published draft agreements between Russia and the United States and NATO on security guarantees on December 17. It follows from the documents that the alliance must renounce any military activity on the territory of Ukraine and other states of Eastern Europe, Transcaucasia and Central Asia. Also, Russia and NATO must pledge not to create conditions that can be regarded as a threat by the other side.
Later, in January 2022, negotiations on security guarantees took place in three stages. The first round took place in Geneva on 10 January. It was followed by a meeting of the Russia-NATO Council in Brussels, followed by consultations on January 13 at the Vienna site of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
The meeting between Lavrov and Blinken on this topic took place on 21 January. The Russian minister then noted that the United States agreed to provide written responses to the proposals of the Russian Federation.
On January 26, US Ambassador John Sullivan handed over Washington’s responses to Moscow. Blinken elaborated that the written replies handed over set out “a serious diplomatic way forward.” He stressed that the US authorities are ready for cooperation and communication with the Russian Federation. On the same day, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced that the Russian Federation had received a written response to the Russian proposals.
On January 27, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted that the Kremlin was in no hurry to draw conclusions on the US response. He also stressed that it cannot be said that Moscow’s considerations were taken into account or that “there was a willingness to take into account our concerns.” At the same time, the Kremlin spokesman said that there is a prospect of continuing the dialogue on security guarantees.
On January 28, in a conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron, Russian leader Vladimir Putin noted that Moscow would carefully study the written responses on security guarantees, after which it would decide on its further actions.
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.
