The United States and Russia sought to lower the temperature in a heated stand-off over Ukraine, even as they said no breakthrough was imminent in the crisis that has raised fears of a possible Russian invasion.
Key points:
- US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said the two countries were now on a “clearer path to understanding”
- Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov called the talks “constructive and useful”
- The US has agreed to provide written responses to Russian demands on Ukraine and NATO next week
Armed with seemingly intractable and diametrically opposed demands, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov met in Geneva at what Mr Blinken said was a “critical moment”.
With an estimated 100,000 Russian troops massed near Ukraine, many fear Moscow is preparing for an invasion, a claim Russia denies.
The US and its allies are scrambling to present a united front to prevent such an invasion — or coordinate a tough response if they cannot.
Mr Blinken said Mr Lavrov repeated Russia’s insistence that it had no plans to invade Ukraine, but stressed that the US and its allies were not convinced.
Mr Lavrov, meanwhile, called the talks “constructive and useful” and said the US agreed to provide written responses to Russian demands on Ukraine and NATO next week.
That could at least delay any imminent aggression for a few days.
But Mr Lavrov declined to characterise that pledge.
“We will understand that when we receive the US written response to all of our proposals.”
Moscow has demanded that the NATO alliance promise that Ukraine — a former Soviet republic — will never be allowed to join.
Russia wants West out of eastern Europe
It also wants the allies to remove troops and military equipment from parts of eastern Europe.
The US and its NATO allies have flatly rejected those demands and said Russian President Vladimir Putin knew they were nonstarters.
They said they were open to less dramatic moves.
Mr Blinken said the US would be open to a meeting between Mr Putin and US President Joe Biden if it would be “useful and productive”.
Washington and its allies have repeatedly promised “severe” consequences such as biting economic sanctions — though not military action — against Russia if an invasion goes ahead.
Mr Blinken repeated that warning Friday before the talks.
He said the US and its allies were committed to diplomacy, but also to a “united, swift and severe response” if that proved impossible and Russia decided to pursue aggression against Ukraine.
But he said he also wanted to use the opportunity to share directly with Mr Lavrov some “concrete ideas to address some of the concerns that you have raised, as well as the deep concerns that many of us have about Russia’s actions”.
Ukraine is already beset by conflict.
Mr Putin seized control of Ukraine’s Crimea Peninsula in 2014 and backed a separatist insurgency in eastern Ukraine, part of a simmering but largely stalemated conflict with Ukrainian forces that has taken more than 14,000 lives.
Mr Putin faced limited international consequences for those moves, but the West said a new invasion would be different.
Ahead of his meeting with Mr Lavrov, Mr Blinken met Ukraine’s president in Kyiv and top diplomats from Britain, France and Germany in Berlin this week.
US impose further sanctions on Russia
Adding to its repeated verbal warnings to Russia, the United States stepped up sanctions on Thursday.
The US Treasury Department slapped new measures on four Ukrainian officials.
Mr Blinken said the four were at the centre of a Kremlin effort begun in 2020 to damage Ukraine’s ability to “independently function”.
The Russian Foreign Ministry reaffirmed its demands Friday that NATO not expand into Ukraine, that no alliance weapons be deployed near Russian borders and that alliance forces pull back from Central and Eastern Europe.
Russia has denied it is planning an invasion and instead accused the West on Thursday of plotting “provocations” in Ukraine, citing the delivery of weapons to the country by British military transport planes in recent days.
AP