The US authorities expressed hope for the viability of new diplomatic contacts with Russia after receiving a written response from Moscow to Washington’s proposals on the issue of security guarantees. This was announced on Wednesday, February 2, by State Department spokesman Ned Price.
“We continue to hope that Foreign Minister Lavrov seems to have indicated yesterday that after receiving the Russian response, there will be an opportunity for further diplomatic interaction. We don’t know yet at what forum, we don’t know yet at what time,” he said.
In addition, Price said that the US administration does not put forward any preconditions for negotiations with the Russian Federation.
At the same time, he stressed that steps aimed at “containment” of Moscow will continue until the United States sees on the Russian side the readiness to de-escalate the ongoing crisis around Ukraine.
Ned Price voiced the position of the United States, which insists on the full implementation of the Minsk agreements by all parties “as a way to de-escalate tensions” and that is why, the State Department spokesman said, continues to “support the Normandy format as a means of discussing how all parties can fully adhere to the Minsk agreements “.
A day earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken discussed Washington’s response to Moscow’s proposals on security guarantees in a telephone conversation.
Blinken recalled US support for Ukraine’s sovereignty, and that the countries of the world have the right to independently determine foreign policy and form alliances, and also called on Russia to immediately de-escalate and withdraw troops and equipment from the borders of Ukrainian territory.
The Russian Foreign Ministry published draft agreements between Russia and the United States and NATO on security guarantees on December 17, 2021. 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 may be regarded by the other side as a threat.
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.
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.
