Russia has warned the United States of military action against Ukraine, if the US and its global allies ignore its long list of demands. US lawmakers called the long Russian list a “pretext to war.”
Russia is ready to attack Ukraine
Sergei Ryabkov, Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister, noted the country is ready to use “military-technical means” if the global west does not listen to its security-centric demands.
According to the list, Russia is asking the US not to expand NATO to its borders, indicating the probable inclusion of Ukraine in the alliance.
Likewise, Russia is also demanding the US must not put its military assets in any of the former Soviet Union republics. Experts believe Russia already made plans to attack Ukraine and is just finding an excuse to launch this attack.
The demands also claim the US must remove its nuclear weapons from Europe, while withdrawing NATO battalions from Poland and Baltic states, including Lithuania, Estonia, and Latvia.
Russia seeks urgent U.S. response on security demands https://t.co/nrGFQ2gerV pic.twitter.com/qVbtokB9VA
— Reuters (@Reuters) December 20, 2021
Similarly, the country opined it should be empowered enough to veto Ukraine’s inclusion into NATO; therefore, the US must not breach its agreement in the future.
While a senior official of the Biden administration noted the US is willing to negotiate, he indicated some of the provided demands are not acceptable at all, and Russia knows it, too.
The official stated the US would declare this week how it will approach bilateral talks with the former cold war foe.
Responding to the Russian list, White House press secretary Jen Psaki asserted the US would need to talk to its global allies before making any decisions. She noted compromising the fundamental principles of European security is not acceptable.
NATO defied Russia’s long list of damning demands
Meanwhile, NATO diplomats denied Russia’s demands of granting veto power to deny Ukraine’s entry into the military alliance, noting the alliance would decide its fate by itself.
A spokesperson of Poland’s foreign ministry asserted since Russia is not a member of NATO, it must not be given the power to make decisions regarding the alliance’s fate.
Similarly, Ukraine’s foreign ministry also opined along the same lines, saying only the country itself and NATO have the authority to settle their terms.
Urging Moscow to embrace negotiations instead of military action, Ukraine’s foreign ministry asserted Russia should try to solve eastern Ukraine’s crisis through negotiations.
While the US labeled the demands unrealistic, it noted incoming sweeping sanctions against Russia if it tried to undermine Ukraine’s sovereignty.
I hope NATO and the freedom-loving world will not let Putin dictate the membership of the organization.
https://t.co/uyDQgSE1xS— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) December 17, 2021
At the same time, more than 100,000 Russian forces are currently stationed on Ukraine’s border, indicating Russia could invade Ukraine at any time.
Russia already threatened the US to take military action against Ukraine when Biden and Putin met on a virtual call.
