KIEV / MOSCOW. The situation on the Russian-Ukrainian border is growing worryingly: Ukraine has again warned of the danger of a Russian attack.
Russia has gathered more than 94,000 soldiers on the Ukrainian border and may be preparing for a large-scale military offensive at the end of January, said Defense Minister Oleksiy Resnikov, referring to intelligence reports. Such an escalation is a likely scenario, but not inevitable. The recently appointed Defense Minister Oleksiy Resnikov warned that Kiev was ready to strike back.
Russia also intensified its threat scenario: Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov strongly warned of a military confrontation and accused NATO of “bringing its military infrastructure closer to the Russian borders”. Moscow is demanding specific security guarantees that NATO will refrain from accession by Ukraine and thus from further eastward expansion.
In any case, the US is alarmed: a summit between US President Joe Biden and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin is set to pave the way out of the messy situation as soon as possible. A video circuit is in preparation, it said. Because the threatened Russian annexation of Ukraine must be prevented at all costs.
