Vladimir Putin won China’s support on Friday on the main issues fueling the Ukrainian crisis and pitting Russia against Western countries, while European diplomatic efforts to avoid a conflict intensify.
On the occasion of the meeting between the Russian president and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, in Beijing, the two countries published a joint statement criticizing US influence and the “destabilizing” role of Western military alliances, starting with NATO, in Europe and in Asia.
Russia and China opposed “any future expansion” of the Atlantic Alliance, taking up Moscow’s demand to calm the tension with Western countries over Ukraine.
Russia has deployed tens of thousands of soldiers to the border with its neighboring country for months, which for Westerners is a clear sign that a military plan is imminent.
But Russia denies this and says it is threatened by NATO, which it asks not to expand, and therefore not to include Ukraine and withdraw from Eastern Europe.
These demands are unacceptable to Western countries.
diplomatic offensive
From Beijing, shortly before the start of the Winter Olympics in the Chinese capital, Putin assured that relations with China are experiencing an “unprecedented” moment.
The two countries also defended this Friday the idea of ”indivisibility of security”, on which Moscow is based to ask NATO to leave its zone, arguing that the security of some cannot be achieved to the detriment of the security of others. , but forgetting the right of each state, and therefore of Ukraine, to choose its allies.
The two countries also denounced the “negative influence of the United States on the peace and stability of the Asia-Pacific region.”
Specifically, they showed their “concern” about the creation in 2021 of the military alliance between the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia, known as Aukus.
In this context of crisis, Europe accelerates its diplomacy. This Friday, the visit to Moscow of the French President, Emmanuel Macron, was confirmed, next Monday, and the German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, on February 15.
The two European leaders will also travel to Kiev, on February 8 and 14, respectively. France and Germany were the two mediators of the conflict between Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists supported by Moscow.
“There are several issues on the agenda. First of all, there will be talks about security guarantees” demanded by Russia, the Kremlin spokesman said, referring to Macron’s visit.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who also offered his mediation in the Ukrainian crisis on a visit to Kiev, accused Western countries on Friday of “making things worse”.
“Russia lost this game”
Also addressing the United States, the Kremlin called on Friday not to believe accusations made on Thursday from Washington, according to which Russia was preparing a video of a fictitious attack by Ukraine to justify an invasion.
“I recommend that you do not believe anyone regarding these issues, in particular the US State Department,” Russian presidential spokesman Dmitri Peskov told reporters.
Pentagon and State Department spokesmen said Thursday they had evidence that Russia planned to release fake videos of an attack on Ukraine to use as a pretext for an invasion. But they did not provide any documents to substantiate these claims.
For their part, Ukrainian authorities on Friday said they were pleased with Western support, which they say allowed Moscow’s “strategy of intimidation” to fail.
This week, leaders from the United Kingdom, Poland, Turkey and the Netherlands have traveled to Kiev.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba assured that “Russia lost this game.”
On Friday, US computer giants YouTube and Facebook shut down channels used by pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.
And for its part, the Russian Defense Ministry published videos of military maneuvers in Belarus, its ally and which borders Ukraine.
The Kremlin said on Friday that units of its S-400 missile systems – which it recently sold to Turkey despite NATO protests – had been delivered to Belarus ahead of drills that start next week and run until June 20. February. (I)
Source: Eluniverso
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