IAmidst the tense situation in the Ukrainian conflict is the planned virtual summit of the Russian head of state Vladimir Putin US President Joe Biden’s meeting is now scheduled for Tuesday, according to the Kremlin. This was announced by spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Saturday in Moscow for Interfax.
According to Russian information, the conflict in Ukraine will also be a problem. Biden Putin warned against military intervention in Ukraine and announced new initiatives to protect the Eastern European country. According to information that has not yet been denied, Russia has amassed a large number of troops in areas not far from the border with Ukraine.
Deployment of up to 175,000 soldiers
Putin and Biden met at their first summit in Geneva in June. Among other things, new talks on the nuclear disarmament initiative were agreed upon.
According to similar media reports, US intelligence services expect an imminent Russian military march on the Ukrainian border with up to 175,000 soldiers. The Washington Post and New York Times reported on Saturday, citing documents from US intelligence and government officials, that the “attack” could begin early next year.
The officials said that the intelligence agency’s findings showed that Russia was preparing for a massive attack on Ukraine. But it is not clear whether the Russian president actually wants to attack Ukraine.
According to the information, artillery, tanks and other heavy equipment will be deployed at various locations along the Ukrainian border with the transport of soldiers. It said the analysis was based in part on satellite imagery that showed “newly arrived units” along the border in November.
On the other hand, the Russian Foreign Ministry accused the United States of carrying out a “special operation” “to aggravate the situation in Ukraine and at the same time transfer responsibility to Russia.” Maria Sakharov, spokeswoman for the Russian newspaper “Kommersant” said on Saturday. He added: “It is based on provocative actions near the Russian border, accompanied by a letter of accusation to Moscow. In principle, nothing new.
Blinken: We are very worried
A few days ago, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken accused Russia of preparing an attack. “We are very concerned about the evidence that Russia has plans to take major aggressive steps against Ukraine,” Blinken said. The US government had threatened Moscow with widespread sanctions in the event of an attack, carried out with the allies.
Ukraine had only warned of a possible attack by Russia on Friday. “The most likely time to prepare for an escalation is the end of January,” Defense Minister Oleksiy Resnikov said. He appointed 94,300 Russian soldiers who could be prepared for this. It’s a “possible scenario” that shouldn’t happen. According to American reports, the government in Washington is currently assuming about 70,000 Russian soldiers on the Ukrainian border.
Russia annexed Ukraine’s Black Sea peninsula of Crimea in 2014 after overthrowing the elected Ukrainian government in Kiev. Since then, Moscow-backed rebels in the east of the country have been fighting against the pro-Western government now in Kiev.
