Members of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces, volunteer units of the Armed Forces, train in a city park in Kyiv. Tensions remain high between Ukraine and Russia as the United States and its NATO allies attempt to intervene diplomatically.
Efrem Lukatsky / AP
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Efrem Lukatsky / AP
Members of the Ukrainian Territorial Defense Forces, volunteer units of the Armed Forces, train in a city park in Kyiv. Tensions remain high between Ukraine and Russia as the United States and its NATO allies attempt to intervene diplomatically.
Efrem Lukatsky / AP
Continue stress Between Ukraine and Russia led to the US delivering 90 tonnes of “deadly aid” to Ukraine this week, as some 100,000 Russian troops remain stationed along the border.
Shipment is part of the supplement 200 million dollars Military aid was approved by President Biden in late December and includes ammunition for Ukraine’s frontline defense forces. And it happened after Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Kyiv and met his Kremlin counterpart, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, in Switzerland earlier this week.
“We don’t expect any major breakouts today,” Blinken said at a news conference news conference after Friday’s meeting with Lavrov in Geneva. “But I believe we are now on a clear path in terms of understanding each other’s concerns and positions.”
Russia continues to insist on written assurances that Ukraine will not join NATO. Blinken said he made clear the US position, which is to “stand firm with Ukraine in support of its sovereignty and territorial integrity”.
Blinken says that any military action Russia’s side will “receive a prompt, serious, and unified response from the United States and our partners and allies.” Russia refused any intention of aggression.
Biden clarifies his message after press conference
During Wednesday’s lengthy press conference at the White House, Biden seemed to complicated message from his own secretary of state, saying that if Russia made a “minor invasion” there could be a split between the NATO allies on how to respond to aggression.
“I think what you’re going to see is Russia will be held accountable if it invades. And that depends on what it does. It’s one thing if it’s a minor trespass and then we will there’s a war about do’s and don’ts,” Biden said.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy promptly responded on Twitter said, “We want to remind the great powers that there are no small invasions and small states.”
On Thursday, Biden clarified his stance saying any invasion would have to meet a “severe and coordinated” economic response.
“If any – any – assembled Russian units move across the Ukrainian border, that is an invasion,” Biden said. “There’s no doubt about it if [Russian President Vladimir] Putin makes this choice, Russia will pay dearly.”
