Washington (AP) — Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said Friday that Russia’s military buildup along the Ukrainian border would give President Vladimir Putin a full range of military options, including actions that are less than a full-scale aggression. Said that it became.
“I don’t think President Putin has made the final decision to use these troops against Ukraine, but he clearly has the ability now,” Austin said at a Pentagon press conference.
Austin said Putin used any part of the army of an estimated 100,000 to occupy Ukrainian cities and “significant territories” or “forced acts or provocations” such as approval of secession territories within Ukraine. “Political acts” can be initiated. He urged Putin to relieve tension.
Austin spoke with Army General Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, saying that Russian troops near Ukraine include not only ground forces, the Navy, and the Air Force, but also cyber and electronic warfare capabilities and special operations forces. rice field. He urged Putin to choose a diplomatic path over conflict.
“If Russia chooses to invade Ukraine, it is not free in terms of casualties and other serious consequences,” Millie said.
Last Friday, the Kremlin said Putin said French President Emmanuel Macron The West did not consider Russia’s key conditions of blocking further expansion of NATO, suspending the deployment of allied weapons near the Russian border, and retreating troops from Eastern Europe.
The United States and NATO formally rejected these requests this week, but Washington outlines controversial areas and offers hope that there may be ways to avoid the war in the buildup of troops near Ukraine. did.
Nevertheless, U.S. President Joe Biden warned Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday There is a “clear possibility” that Russia could take military action against the former Soviet state in February. Russia has repeatedly denied having such a plan.
However, Zelensky sought to mitigate the fear of war by saying that Western vigilance against the imminent aggression prompted many investors in the country’s financial markets to monetize.
“We don’t need this panic,” he said at a press conference. “It cost Ukrainians a lot.”
Putin told Macron that Moscow would study the US-NATO response before deciding on the next move, according to the Kremlin’s call. Earlier that day, Putin held a weekly meeting of his Security Council, only saying that it would address foreign policy issues.
President Putin has made no public statement about the Western response, but Foreign Minister Sergeĭ Viklov said there was little opportunity to reach an agreement.
“They say they won’t change their position, but we won’t change their position,” Viklov told Russian radio stations in a live interview. “There is no room for compromise here.”
“As long as we depend on the Russian Federation, there will be no war. We don’t want war,” he added. “But we are rudely trampled on our interests and will not be ignored.”
Biden administration officials said the United States welcomed Viklov’s comment that Russia was not at war. We need to see Russia pulling some of the troops they deployed away from the Ukrainian border and taking other de-escalation measures. He wasn’t allowed to speak publicly, so the official spoke on condition of anonymity.
Mr Viklov said the United States suggested that both sides could discuss restrictions on the deployment of intermediate-range missiles, restrictions on military exercises, and rules to prevent accidents between warships and aircraft. He said Russia had proposed to discuss those issues many years ago — but Washington and his allies had never taken up them.
While welcoming Washington’s offer on confidence-building measures, he argued that they were second only to Russia’s main concern about NATO. He states that the international agreement will send a letter asking his western counterpart to explain that the security of one country must not be sacrificed to another, and that he does not respect that pledge. Said that.
With reference to the documents signed at the 1999 Summit, they wiggle from answering the reasons why they do not fulfill their obligations sealed by their leaders that they do not sacrifice others to enhance their security. It will be difficult to move, “he said. Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.
Washington warned Moscow of catastrophic sanctions, including penalties for high-ranking Russian officials and key economic sectors, if Moscow invaded Ukraine. When asked about possible sanctions, Mr. Viklov told Washington that Moscow warned that their introduction was equivalent to a complete severance of ties.
NATO says it is strengthening deterrence in the Baltic region while Moscow and the West are considering the next steps, and the United States has an army of 8,500 to be more vigilant about its potential expansion into Europe. Ordered.
Russia has begun military training involving motorized infantry and artillery units in southwestern Russia, fighter aircraft in Kaliningrad in the Baltic Sea, and dozens of warships in the Black Sea and the Arctic. Russian troops also headed to Belarus to wipe out joint training. This raises Western concerns that Moscow could attack Ukraine from the north. The capital of Ukraine is only 75 km (50 miles) from the border with Belarus.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said no war would occur unless Belarus or Russia was attacked and the West accused “trying to drown our slab brotherhood in blood.”
“The leaders of some countries were angry. They think they can win the war,” he said. “But there is no victory. We all lose.”
Despite the alarming rhetoric, Ukrainian officials repeatedly tried to project calm.
Zelenskyy said the US, UK, Australia, Germany and Canada’s decision to withdraw diplomats and some of their dependents from Kiev was a “mistake”.
“They were redundant steps that didn’t help,” he said.
He argued that internal destabilization poses the greatest risk to the country. He also lamented that NATO did not provide Ukraine with a roadmap for accession, saying that if the alliance has no plans to accept Ukraine and does not offer vague promises, the alliance should state clearly. rice field.
“You openly say you will never accept us. Why are you talking about the future?” He said.
Zelenskyy disputes U.S. warnings about an imminent Russian attack, arguing that “no greater escalation than before” is seen, and Russian military concentration panics using Moscow’s “psychological pressure”. He accused it of being part of an attempt to cause it.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov told Parliament that the number of Russian troops near Ukraine (about 130,000) is comparable to last spring’s military buildup, which Moscow eventually withdrew after extensive exercises. He said.
Except for the deployment to Belarus, “no events or actions of a military character significantly different from what happened last spring have been observed,” Reznikov said.
Ukraine is already suffering from conflict. After the expulsion of the Kremlin-friendly president in Kiev in 2014, Moscow annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula and boosted a rebellion in the eastern industrial center of Ukraine. The battle between Ukrainian troops and Russian-backed rebels has killed more than 14,000 people, and efforts to reach reconciliation have been stalled.
USA says Putin currently has all the options in Ukraine
Source link USA says Putin currently has all the options in Ukraine
The post USA says Putin currently has all the options in Ukraine appeared first on Illinois News Today.
No comments:
Post a Comment