Diplomatic efforts are under way to prevent a Russian invasion of Ukraine, and more and more countries are urging their citizens to leave the country immediately.
The Kremlin, however, denounced the US “hysteria” over Ukraine following a telephone conversation between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US counterpart Joe Biden, saying the two men had decided to “continue contacts”.
“The hysteria has reached its peak,” Yuri Usakov, Putin’s diplomatic adviser, told a news conference. But “the presidents agreed to continue contacts at all levels,” he added.
“In recent days and in the last hours, the situation has led to irrationality,” Ushakov said, adding that “the Americans are even announcing the date of the Russian invasion and at the same time strengthening the military muscle of Ukraine.”
He noted, however, that the conversation “remained fairly balanced and professional”.
“The presidents agreed that the views expressed by Joe Biden will be considered in Moscow and will be taken into account in our response,” NATO and Washington said in a statement.
During a telephone conversation this afternoon with French President Emmanuel Macron, Vladimir Putin had already denounced “provocative speculations about an alleged ‘Russian invasion’ of Ukraine” as well as “large-scale deliveries of modern weapons” to its neighbor.
A Russian invasion of Ukraine has been suggested by the White House as a matter of days, with Russia deploying more than 100,000 men on Ukraine’s border and conducting exercises in the Black Sea and Belarus, de facto encircling its pro-Western neighbor.
Westerners and Russians continue the dialogue, but the tone remains conflicting, the former wanting to draw a sign of de-escalation from Russia, which calls for an end to NATO enlargement and Ukrainian support, considering it as non-negotiable “security guarantees”.
Many Western countries have asked their citizens to leave Ukrainian territory, and Moscow announced today that it would reduce its diplomatic staff there.
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