US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, during telephone conversations on Monday, February 14, discussed their diplomatic contacts with Russia and Ukraine. This was reported by the press service of the White House.
The subject of conversation was also the “continuing build-up” of Russian military forces on the Ukrainian border.
“The leaders discussed their recent diplomatic contacts with Ukraine and Russia. They also reviewed ongoing diplomatic and containment efforts in response to Russia’s ongoing military buildup near Ukraine’s borders and reiterated their support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
It is noted that Biden and Johnson discussed the progress of “efforts to strengthen the defensive deployment of forces and assets on NATO’s eastern flank” and stressed the preservation of close coordination between allies and partners, “including in terms of readiness to impose harsh consequences for Russia in the event of further military escalation” .
Earlier Monday, Boris Johnson described the current situation in Ukraine as being “on the edge of a precipice” with the opportunity to take a “step back”. He noted that, according to the US, an escalation at the border is expected within the next 48 hours. Against this background, the British Prime Minister stressed the need for tough sanctions against Russia. In particular, he called on European countries to abandon the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.
On the same day, the G7 countries, against the backdrop of the situation in Ukraine, expressed their readiness to impose sanctions against Russia, which would lead to “large-scale and immediate consequences” for the country’s economy. It was noted that any Russian “aggression” against Ukraine would be “met with a quick and coordinated forceful response.”
In addition to the UK, the Group of Seven includes Germany, Italy, Canada, the USA, France and Japan.
On February 10, the UK Parliament approved amendments to the law on sanctions against Russia, allowing the introduction of restrictive measures against a wider range of individuals and companies from the Russian Federation, which, according to the British side, destabilize the situation in Ukraine.
In the United States and EU countries, they have recently expressed concern about the alleged increase in Russia’s “aggressive actions” against Ukraine. Moscow has repeatedly denied such accusations, saying that it does not threaten anyone. As the Russian side emphasized, such accusations are used as a pretext to deploy as much NATO military equipment as possible near the borders of the Russian Federation.
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.
