Washington
\nTop-level diplomatic meetings in Washington and Moscow on Monday will push for a resolution of the crisis between NATO and Russia over Ukraine, but Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov played down hopes of a swift breakthrough, saying that tensions persist.
\nAfter a grim U.S. assessment predicted high civilian casualties if Russia invades Ukraine, Peskov complained that U.S. and NATO leaders were refusing to accept Russia\u2019s demands for security guarantees, including a ban on admission of Ukraine and other Eastern European countries to NATO.
\n\u201cInstead, they prefer a rather agitated discussion of what they call Russia\u2019s future invasion of Ukraine,\u201d Peskov said, speaking to journalists Monday. \u201cWe have been hearing daily statements on the topic from the United States and the European capitals,\u201d he added, blaming Western leaders for the \u201ctense\u201d atmosphere.
\nGerman Chancellor Olaf Scholz promised a \u201cunited and decisive\u201d response to any hostilities ahead of a Monday meeting with President Biden, his first White House visit since taking over from longtime German leader Angela Merkel in December.
\nScholz says response to Russia will be \u2018united and decisive\u2019 if Ukraine is invaded
\nFrench President Emmanuel Macron, looking to de-escalate the crisis in a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Monday, spoke to Biden by phone Sunday to share information on diplomatic efforts, according to the White House.
\nPeskov said Moscow was waiting to hear Macron\u2019s proposal to defuse tensions but said the situation was \u201ctoo complicated\u201d to expect a breakthrough in one meeting.
\nRussian units have moved closer to Ukraine\u2019s borders, according to military analysts, and a flotilla of Russian warships including six amphibious assault vessels from the Baltic and Northern Fleets gathered in the Mediterranean Sea ahead of massive Russian naval drills.
\nRussia began a military buildup near Ukraine in the fall, before demanding sweeping security guarantees from Washington and NATO, including an end to NATO expansion and moves to roll back alliance forces and equipment from Eastern Europe and the Baltic states.
\nPutin has yet to take action over U.S. and NATO rejection of these demands, amid fears the window for a diplomatic resolution is narrowing. U.S. and European officials have warned that Moscow would pay a massive cost in sanctions if it invades Ukraine.
\nScholz has been under fire in Germany and from Ukraine, the United States and some NATO allies over his muted response to the crisis.
\nMacron, meanwhile, is trying revive the stalled 2015 Minsk peace agreement, a deal brokered by Berlin and Paris that has failed to end the eight-year war in eastern Ukraine between Kyiv\u2019s forces and two Russian-backed separatist regions.
\nPutin insists in his talks with international leaders that Ukraine implement the deal and give autonomy to the regions, but Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called for revisions.
\nThe head of Ukraine\u2019s Security Council, Oleksiy Danilov, last week warned the West against forcing Ukraine to implement the deal on Russian terms. Danilov said it would spark protests and chaos, destabilizing the nation and benefiting Moscow.
\nMacron will travel to Kyiv on Tuesday to meet Zelensky. Scholz is due to travel to Kyiv on Feb. 14 and Moscow a day later.
\nUkraine Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Monday the only acceptable de-escalation would be Russia withdrawing troops.
\n\u201cA single withdrawal doesn\u2019t mean de-escalation. So we need to see that everything that has been amassed along our border in the last year is steadily being withdrawn. That will be a clear message of de-escalation,\u201d Kuleba said.
\nBerlin has faced criticism at home and in Ukraine over its refusal to supply lethal weapons to Kyiv or increase its troop presence on NATO\u2019s eastern flank amid a buildup of Russian forces. U.S. officials warn that the buildup could lead to a lightning attack that seizes the Ukrainian capital in days and leaves as many as 50,000 civilians dead or injured.
\nIn an interview with The Washington Post, Scholz on Sunday rebutted claims that his government has not done enough, after Berlin drew scorn from Kyiv for sending helmets to help with self-defense as the United States and other NATO members sent lethal weapons, warships and military jets.
\n\u201cThe reality is that Germany is the biggest NATO partner in continental Europe,\u201d with the largest defense budget on the continent, Scholz said, adding that Berlin is \u201cthe strongest economic supporter of Ukraine.\u201d
\nBerlin\u2019s stance on sending arms, Scholz said Sunday, was consistent with its long-standing restrictions on exporting weapons into crisis regions.
\nKuleba described Germany\u2019s refusal to send Ukraine military aid and its blockage of some military equipment from third countries as \u201cunfair.\u201d
\n\u201cWe believe that there is room for greater action for Germany,\u201d he said but added that Kyiv would continue to work with Berlin in other areas.
\nScholz affirmed Germany\u2019s willingness to consider blocking the operations of the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline \u2014 which will deepen Berlin\u2019s reliance on Moscow \u2014 as part of any Western sanctions against Russia in event of an invasion.
\n\u201cIt is absolutely clear that in a situation like this, all options are on the table,\u201d he said. \u201cI will not get into any specifics, but our answer will be united and decisive.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Washington Top-level diplomatic meetings in Washington and Moscow on Monday will push for a resolution of the crisis between NATO and Russia over Ukraine, but Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov played down hopes of a swift breakthrough, saying that tensions persist. After a grim U.S. assessment predicted high civilian casualties if Russia invades Ukraine, Peskov complained […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-243161","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n