The United States said yesterday that a diplomatic solution was possible with Russia but that it wouldn't give up to its demands in talks next week, as NATO warned of real risks Moscow will invade Ukraine.
Top Russian and U.S. diplomats met Monday in Geneva after Moscow amassed tens of thousands of troops on the Ukrainian border and urged the West not to expand NATO.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken accused Russia of gaslighting the world by accusing Ukraine of provocations, and vowed that the talks would focus on Moscow's aggression toward Ukraine. We won't be diverted from that issue, Blinken told reporters.
Using an analogy he's previously used, Blinken likened Russia to a fox, saying it had to attack the hen house because its occupants somehow pose a threat. Blinken said Russia should know it was issuing absolutely non-starter demands, but that it was part of its playbook. Russia can claim that the other side is not engaging and then to use that as a justification for aggressive action, Blinken said.
Blinken said that it was up to Russia to determine whether there will be success in Geneva, where delegations will be led by his deputy, Wendy Sherman, and Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov.
We are prepared to respond forcefully to Russian aggression. If Russia chooses to take a diplomatic approach, a diplomatic solution is still possible and preferable, according to Blinken.
Russia's president Vladimir Putin denies plans for an invasion of Ukraine, where Moscow seized the Crimean peninsula in 2014 and has championed an insurgency that has since claimed more than 13,000 lives.
But U.S. President Joe Biden has been leading Western threats of massive consequences if Russia invades, with measures being considered to include severing Moscow from the global banking system.
Russia s aggressive actions seriously undermined the security order in Europe, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said after a video meeting of the Western Alliance's foreign ministers.
The Russian military build up continues, and they are gradually building up with more forces and more capabilities. Russia claims that NATO would not expand east after the Cold War.
In draft proposals issued by Russia, NATO would not take in former Soviet republics Ukraine and Georgia or build bases elsewhere in the former Soviet Union.
Russia ramped up pressure on Ukraine after the overthrow of a government that refused to move closer to the West.
Russia will meet with all 30 NATO members after the Geneva talks on Wednesday - the first such encounter since July 2019.
NATO will engage in dialogue with Russia in good faith and in good faith, but we must be prepared for the possibility that diplomacy will fail, Stoltenberg said.
He said that foreign ministers stressed that any further aggression against Ukraine would have significant consequences and carry a heavy price for Russia. All our allies sent a clear message that we will not compromise on core principles, including the right for every nation to decide its own path, Stoltenberg said.
Diplomats said there were key differences between European allies over the approach NATO should take at the talks with Russia next week.
Some members insist that the focus has to remain on getting Putin to back off from Ukraine and that Moscow's proposals need to be rejected out of hand.
There are issues that could be room for discussion, as some people said that the meeting could help to kickstart a negotiation process.
EU head Ursula von der Leyen insists that Europe has to be involved in any solution.
Stoltenberg said that the United States had been very clear that there would be no decisions about European security, no discussions about European security without the Europeans at the table. Blinken said Friday that there would be no conversations about Ukraine without Ukraine in a phone call with his counterpart.
Moscow's demands have also frayed nerves in non-NATO European allies Finland and Sweden, which have rejected claims that anyone should have a say in the decision to join the alliance.
Stoltenberg spoke to the leaders of the two nations Friday to insist that the alliance respects the right of every country to choose its own path.