Biden and Putin to speak as Ukraine warnings mount
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The border patrol boat leaves the port of Mariupol, Ukraine’s Black Sea port on February 11, 2022.
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On Saturday, the U.S. President Joe Biden will be joined by his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. This comes as Western nations warn that war in Ukraine can ignite anytime.
According to a White House official, Putin wanted the call to occur on Monday. However, Biden was keen to hold it earlier as Washington provided increasingly compelling accounts of an attack on Ukraine.
Australia and New Zealand joined those countries calling for their citizens to flee Ukraine on Saturday, following Washington’s warning that a Russian invasion (including an air attack) could happen anytime.
Moscow has repeatedly challenged Washington’s story, claiming that it has deployed over 100,000 soldiers close to the Ukrainian border in order to defend itself from NATO-aligned aggression.
Antony Blinken, U.S. Secretary-of State, expressed optimism that Putin will choose diplomacy. However Washington said it would quickly impose economic sanctions on Moscow if they invade.
After a meeting in Fiji with Pacific leaders, Blinken said that “I hope he won’t choose the path to renewed aggression” and that he would instead prefer diplomacy. We’re ready if he does not.
Putin, trying to gain influence in post-Cold War Europe is looking for security guarantees from Biden so that Kyiv can’t join NATO or have missiles deployed near Russia’s borders.
Washington considers many of these proposals non-starters, but Washington has encouraged the Kremlin and its European allies to talk about them together.
Biden still believes that one on one engagement with Putin could be the best option for a solution. He will call the weekend phone conference from Camp David in Maryland.
While biden and putin did not reach an agreement on their December call, it set the groundwork for bilateral diplomacy. Both leaders have not spoken in over a year and diplomats from each side have been unsuccessful at finding common ground.
On Thursday, four-way talks between Russia, Ukraine and France in Berlin did not progress.
According to Russia’s TASS news agency, Putin plans to also speak to French President Emmanuel Macron Saturday.
Collecting forces
U.S. intelligence believe that a swift assault on Kyiv could be possible. Biden’s national safety adviser Jake Sullivan said to reporters Friday that Putin may order an invasion prior to the Winter Olympics. However, it remains uncertain if this command has ever been issued.
According to him, they have enough troops close to the border for an invasion of the country. He also suggested that the military might launch aerial bombing.
Russia’s Deputy U.N. spoke out on Twitter. Dmitry Polyanskiy, the Ambassador of Russia to U.N. accused Washington’s incitement to “hysteria”, as well as mounting a panic campaign.
Officials from Ukraine have attempted to discredit Washington’s view that an invasion was imminent.
Reuters has learned that Washington plans to send 3,000 more troops to Poland in order to reassure NATO allies. These troops are available to be deployed to Europe with the additional 8,500 soldiers already in reserve.
A street market in Kyiv was filled with people on Tuesday, February 11, 2022.
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Meanwhile, Russian forces began to gather in Ukraine’s north, southeast, and east as six Russian warships crossed the Black Sea. More Russian military equipment also arrived in Belarus. A commercial satellite image from the United States showed that new Russian military installations were being made at several locations near the border.
Biden discussed the crisis in Britain with leaders from France, Germany and Poland, along with those of NATO and EU. Antony Blinken, the U.S. secretary of state, also met with Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign ministry.
Blinken declared that Ukraine has his full support after Friday’s call.
Washington expressed concerns that Russia and China are cooperating at high levels, with an administration official saying Saturday they were working to undermine the United States.
Moscow and Beijing have a partnership agreement that shows their mutual respect. A meeting between Putin’s and China’s President Xi Jinping showed Beijing regards Moscow’s move regarding Ukraine’s “legitimate” actions, the official said to reporters who were accompanying Blinken as he flew from Australia to Fiji.
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