Putin to mull options if West refuses guarantees on Ukraine

2 years ago 285

MOSCOW — Russian President Vladimir Putin said Sunday helium would ponder a slew of options if the West fails to conscionable his propulsion for information guarantees precluding NATO’s enlargement to Ukraine.

Earlier this month, Moscow submitted draught information documents demanding that NATO contradict rank to Ukraine and different erstwhile Soviet countries and rotation backmost its subject deployments successful Central and Eastern Europe.

Putin has urged the West to determination rapidly to conscionable the demands, informing that Moscow volition person to instrumentality “adequate military-technical measures” if the West continues its “aggressive” people “on the threshold of our home.”

Asked to specify what specified Moscow’s effect could be, helium said successful comments aired by Russian authorities TV Sunday that “it could beryllium diverse,” adding without elaboration that “it volition beryllium connected what proposals our subject experts taxable to me.”

The U.S. and its allies person refused to connection Russia the benignant of warrant connected Ukraine that Putin wants, citing NATO’s rule that rank is unfastened to immoderate qualifying country. They agreed. however, to motorboat information talks with Russia adjacent period to sermon its concerns.

Putin said the talks with the U.S. volition beryllium held successful Geneva. In parallel, negotiations are besides acceptable to beryllium held betwixt Russia and NATO and broader discussions are expected nether the aegis of the Organization for Security and Cooperation successful Europe.

In remarks broadcast Sunday, Putin said that Russia submitted the demands successful the anticipation of a constructive reply from the West.

“We didn’t bash it conscionable to spot it blocked ... but for the intent of reaching a negotiated diplomatic effect that would beryllium fixed successful legally binding documents,” Putin said.

He reaffirmed that NATO rank for Ukraine oregon the deployment of confederation weapons determination is simply a reddish enactment for Moscow that it wouldn’t let the West to cross.

“We person obscurity to retreat,” helium said, adding that NATO could deploy missiles successful Ukraine that would instrumentality conscionable 4 oregon 5 minutes to scope Moscow. “They person pushed america to a enactment that we can’t cross. They person taken it to the constituent wherever we simply indispensable archer them; ‘Stop!’”

He voiced interest that the U.S. and its allies could effort to resistance retired the information talks and usage them arsenic a screen to prosecute a subject buildup adjacent Russia.

He noted that Russia published its information demands to marque them known to the nationalist and rise the unit connected the U.S. and its allies to negociate a information deal.

“We person conscionable 1 extremity — to scope agreements that would guarantee the information of Russia and its citizens present and successful a semipermanent perspective,” helium said.

The Kremlin presented its information request amid the tensions implicit a Russian unit buildup adjacent Ukraine successful caller weeks that has fueled Western fears of a imaginable invasion. U.S. President Joe Biden warned Putin successful a video telephone earlier this period that Russia volition look “severe consequences” if it attacks Ukraine.

Russia has denied an volition of launching an penetration and, successful its turn, accused Ukraine of hatching plans to effort to reclaim power of the territories held by Moscow-backed rebels by force. Ukraine has rejected the claim.

Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula successful 2014 and soon aft threw its enactment down a separatist rebellion successful the country’s east. Over much than 7 years, the warring has killed implicit 14,000 radical and devastated Ukraine’s concern heartland, known arsenic the Donbas.

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