In Its Initial Round Of Negotiations With The US, Russia Minimized Risks To Ukraine

In Its Initial Round Of Negotiations With The US, Russia Minimized Risks To Ukraine

 

Touchaheart Nigeria reports that officials from both nations met in Geneva on Monday, January 10 for high-level discussions on easing tensions after Russia deployed 100,000 troops near Ukraine’s border, sparking concerns of an incursion and warnings from the West.

 

Both sides agreed to continue efforts to decrease tensions following a seven-hour meeting on Monday.

 

But there was no sign of a major breakthrough. The US has said there would be sanctions if Russia were to attack Ukraine. Russia, meanwhile, has warned the US not to “underestimate the risks” involved in Moscow’s confrontation with the West.

 

“We explained to our colleagues that we have no plans, no intentions to attack Ukraine,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told reporters following the meeting.

 

 

He said the Russians had told their US counterparts “that all measures for the combat training of troops and forces are carried out within our territory” and that there was “no reason to fear any escalation scenario in this regard”.

 

In its initial round of negotiations with the US, Russia minimized risks to Ukraine.

 

Officials from both nations met in Geneva on Monday, January 10 for high-level discussions on easing tensions after Russia deployed 100,000 troops near Ukraine’s border, sparking concerns of an incursion and warnings from the West.

 

Both sides agreed to continue efforts to decrease tensions following a seven-hour meeting on Monday.

 

However, there was no hint of a significant breakthrough. If Russia attacks Ukraine, the US has stated that sanctions will be imposed. Meanwhile, Russia has urged the United States not to “underestimate the risks” of its confrontation with the West.

 

“We explained to our colleagues that we have no plans, no intentions to attack Ukraine,” Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told reporters following the meeting.

 

 

He said the Russians had told their US counterparts “that all measures for the combat training of troops and forces are carried out within our territory” and that there was “no reason to fear any escalation scenario in this regard”.

 

The conversations, according to US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, were “frank and candid” discussions aimed at better understanding each side’s security concerns.

 

 

This was the first time Russian and American ambassadors had to face one other to address the Ukraine impasse and Russia’s demands for Nato to withdraw from eastern Europe.

 

 

Nonetheless, the chasm between the two sides is wide. The US encouraged Russia to de-escalate the situation and withdraw its forces from Ukraine’s border if it did not wish to attack the country, but received no assurances.

 

Russia asked that Nato give a firm commitment that it will never admit Ukraine to the alliance, a demand that the US flatly refused.

 

 

The US stated that it would be able to limit military drills with Baltic states and missile deployments to Ukraine, but there was no indication that this would be sufficient for Russia.

 

 

Sherman claimed that the US had resisted Russian suggestions that were “non-starters” for the US government, such as Russia’s demand that Nato pledge to never admitting Ukraine to the alliance.

 

“We will not allow anyone to slam closed Nato’s open-door policy, which has always been central to the Nato alliance,” she said.

 

 

According to Sherman, the US delegation told the Russians that any invasion would be met with “significant cost and consequences well beyond what they faced in 2014” when Russia annexed the peninsula of Crimea from Ukraine.

 

 

These measures could include sanctions against key financial institutions, export controls, “enhancements of Nato force posture on allied territory” and increased security assistance to Ukraine, she added.