The Kremlin has repeatedly denied it has any intent at 'retaliatory measures', but the U.S. and its NATO allies are worried about Russia deploying an estimated 100,000 troops near Ukraine and launching a series of sweeping military maneuvers.
Blinken said the document made clear that the U.S. is standing by its oft-stated positions. “There is no change, there will be no change,” he said. But, he said the written response to Russia also contains “serious” offers for a diplomatic path to de-escalate soaring tensions over Ukraine by addressing Russian concerns on other matters.
Blinken said he expects to speak again with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in the coming days to get the Russian reaction. But, he said that whether Russia accepts them is entirely the decision of President Vladimir Putin. “That is up to President Putin,” he said. “We’ll see how they respond.”
Moscow has demanded guarantees that NATO will never admit Ukraine and other ex-Soviet nations as members and that the alliance will roll back troop deployments in former Soviet bloc nations. Some of these, like the membership pledge, are nonstarters for the U.S. and its allies, creating a seemingly intractable stalemate that many fear can only end in a war.
As part of the drills, motorized infantry and artillery units in southwestern Russia practiced firing live ammunition, warplanes in Kaliningrad on the Baltic Sea performed bombing runs, dozens of warships sailed for training exercises in the Black Sea and the Arctic, and Russian fighter jets and paratroopers arrived in Belarus for joint war games.
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