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Western allies on Thursday (December 16th) rejected Russia’s attempt to thwart Ukraine’s ambitions for NATO membership and urged Moscow to return to French-German-mediated talks to ease growing tensions on the Russia-Ukraine border. .
Russian President Vladimir Putin is pushing for direct dialogue with the administration of his American counterpart, Joe Biden, to resolve the border issue.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has called Russia an “aggressor”, reiterating accusations that Moscow has amassed large forces on Ukraine’s border.
Even European Union leaders, most of whom are from countries that are also NATO allies, have warned of massive economic sanctions if Russia takes military action.
Meeting in Brussels at an EU summit, European leaders called for a return to the “Normandy Format”, a four-way dialogue between Paris, Berlin, Kiev and Moscow aimed at ending the conflict.
On Wednesday, Russia handed over a list of security demands to US Assistant Secretary of State Karen Donfried, who then came to NATO headquarters in Brussels on Thursday to discuss them with Stoltenberg.
The NATO chief also met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and held a joint press conference to insist that any decision on membership is a matter for Kiev and the alliance’s 30 member states.
“We will not compromise on Ukraine’s right to choose its own path. “We will not compromise on NATO’s right to protect all NATO allies,” Stoltenberg said.
He also said there would be no compromise on NATO’s partnership with Ukraine, describing it as important to both sides and “by no means a threat to Russia”.
On Wednesday, Zelensky attended a summit with EU leaders, most of whose countries are also members of NATO, and said most of them understood and supported Ukraine’s position in the conflict.
But he is irritated that European powers in particular have refused to take preemptive action against Russia, preferring only to threaten with a response in case of Russian action.
On Wednesday, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov told Donfried that NATO should stop its eastward expansion and withdraw a promise that Ukraine could become a candidate for membership.
Putin wants to talk directly to the United States about his tensions with Kiev, seeking security guarantees as an implicit condition for easing tensions.
But Western leaders stress what they say is the massive mobilization of Russian troops near the border with Ukraine. The US and the EU have threatened “massive” economic sanctions in the event of an invasion./ REL
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