The Brazilian embassy in Kiev released a statement this Friday (11) in which it recommends that Brazilian citizens in Ukraine remain on alert amid rising tensions with Russia in the region.
The agency, however, reported that there is no recommendation against the presence of Brazilians in the country.
“The Embassy reiterates that Brazilian citizens must remain alert and always updated through reliable local and international sources. At the same time, there is no security recommendation against staying in Ukraine,” reads an excerpt from the statement.
The diplomatic representation also stated that, “in case of an emergency, it will issue alerts and transmit relevant recommendations to the Brazilian community through its social media (Facebook and Twitter), its official page and, if necessary, other means of communication”.
The US embassy in Ukraine announced that it had decided to withdraw its non-essential personnel from its headquarters in Kiev, and Moscow also said it had reduced its diplomatic corps in the neighboring country. Germany, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Canada, Norway, Australia, Japan and Israel have recommended that their fellow citizens leave Ukraine.
On Friday, the United States repeated warnings that Russia could invade Ukraine “at any moment”, without citing specific evidence. Joe Biden’s National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said the attack could take place even before the end of the Winter Olympics in Beijing, which end on the 20th.
This Saturday (12), in a telephone conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron, Russian President Vladimir Putin called “provocative speculation” the allegation that he is preparing an invasion.
“Vladimir Putin and Emmanuel Macron discussed […] provocative speculation related to an alleged Russian ‘invasion’ of Ukraine, accompanied by significant deliveries of modern weapons to that country,” the Kremlin said in a statement.
Macron, for his part, told Putin that “sincere dialogue is not compatible with a military escalation” on Russia’s border with Ukraine, the Elysee Palace reported.
After Macron’s phone call, Putin began a phone conversation with US President Joe Biden to address the same issue.
Also on Saturday, the heads of Russian and American diplomacy also spoke by phone.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken that the “propaganda campaign launched by the United States and its allies about a ‘Russian aggression’ aims to provoke and encourage the authorities to Kiev” to a possible conflict in Donbass, a region in the east of the country where Ukrainian forces have been fighting pro-Russian separatists supported by Moscow for eight years.
