Tensions between Washington and Moscow multiplied in recent months, despite the appeasement will displayed by MM. Putin and biden at a first historic summit in June in Geneva.
Le Monde with AFP
A Ukrainian soldier was killed, Wednesday, on the front line in warmers with the protracted separatists in the east of the country, announced the Ukrainian army, Thursday, December 2nd. This death that wears 61 the number of Ukrainian soldiers killed since the beginning of the year in the east of the country occurs in the peak of tension, Ukraine saying fears an imminent invasion of Russia, who is accused of having Massage of troops at the border.
Multiple tension topics
Moscow said to hope for a “contact” between Russian President, Vladimir Putin, and his American counterpart, Joe Biden. Cited by Russian press agencies, a Vice Minister of Foreign Russian, Sergei Riabkov, explained that “this contact is really necessary, the problems multiply”, especially in bilateral relations. “There is no mutual understanding about how one could proceed to a de-escalation of the situation in Europe” which “arouses great concern”, he added, stressing that this situation would be “one Main topics of discussion “between the two leaders. Mr. Riabkov did not specify what form would take this “contact”.
Tension topics between Washington and Moscow have multiplied in recent months, despite the appeasement will displayed by MM. Putin and biden at a first historical summit, in June, Geneva.
Interview Blinken-Lavrov
At the Ministerial Meeting of the Organization for Cooperation and Security in Europe (SECSE), which brings together the two rival powers as well as Ukraine in the suburbs of Stockholm, the American and Russian foreign ministers had A tense face-to-face, exchanging warnings and threats about Ukraine, while ensuring the crisis to solve the crisis by diplomacy.
“We are deeply concerned about the plans of Russia with a view to a new aggression against Ukraine,” launched the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, next to his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov. The US Secretary had previously called Russia to “de-escalation” and withdrawing the recently raised troops, according to the Westerners, at the Ukrainian border.
“The nightmare scenario of the military confrontation” is doing its return to Europe, warned his Sergei Lavrov, who accused the organization of the North Atlantic Treaty (NATO) of ” bring back its military infrastructure from Russian borders “. Russian minister again opposed any new enlargement of the Atlantic Alliance East Eastern European – and therefore to Ukraine – but he also assured wanting to give a chance to dialogue. “We are interested in joint efforts for the resolution of the Ukrainian crisis,” he argued. “We are ready.”
m. Blinken also met in the Swedish capital his Ukrainian counterpart, Dmitro Kouleba, who reiterated his request for a “deterrent train” so that President Putin “reflect twice before resorting to military force”.
Kiev and its Western allies have been concerned about a new strengthening of Russian troops at the borders of Ukraine and a possible winter invasion. Moscow, who seized Crimea and is accused of supporting the separatists, denied preparing an attack. The Kremlin has further affirmed Thursday that the will posted by the Ukrainian authorities to recover Crimea was “a direct threat addressed to Russia”. These tensions continued in the field during diplomatic meetings.
In addition to Ukraine, in recent weeks have been marked by the crisis of migrants at the borders of Belarus and the European Union and by a brief resurege of clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan – all members of The OSCE. The EU wedled on Wednesday for new sanctions against Belarus, and the United States should follow “very soon”, according to the US State Department.