Tensions are escalating on the Russian-Ukrainian border, where military forces are still concentrated.
Diplomatic consultations at NATO level are under way in Brussels, at the same time as Russia announced fleet exercises with real fire in the Black Sea. Russian missiles are sailing from their bases for aeronautical exercises while the American destroyers Roosvelt and Donald Cook are expected to be in the area in the next few hours, which will cross the Bosphorus despite warnings from Moscow to "stay away from Crimea for their own good."
According to Kiev, Russia has mobilized more than 40.000 troops on the eastern border with Ukraine, while the military force in the occupied territories of Crimea is similar. Moscow, for its part, complains that NATO is deploying more than 40.000 troops near the Russian border. The crisis seems to be widening as the Russian fleet announces high schools in the Black Sea where US warships are expected in the coming hours.
Ukrainian troops are preparing, with their eyes on the potential threat of Russian troops. Indicative of the climate are the statements of media analysts close to the Kremlin. Russia Today and Sputnik editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan said "war is inevitable": "It will be a different kind of war. I do not think it will be a large-scale hot war, like World War II, I do not think it will be a long, cold war. "This war will be of the third type: cyber war."
The United States also enjoys the support of Germany. The two countries' defense ministers discussed the crisis, with Berlin accusing Moscow of "seeking a heated incident".
Biden: "Sudden Threat"
Meanwhile, in the first telephone conversation that new US President Joe Biden had with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, Biden expressed concern about the "sudden threat" of the concentration of Russian military forces on the border with Russia. to de-escalate the tension.
There is intense diplomatic mobility in Brussels with a barrage of meetings, and the US Secretary of State is at NATO headquarters for the second time in a few days for consultations. Anthony Blinken's agenda with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg is at the "top" of the crisis in Ukraine and Afghanistan. "We will discuss the concerns that exist throughout the alliance about Russian actions inside and next to Ukraine," Blinken said. "We are all concerned about the massive accumulation of military forces," said Jens Stoltenberg.
Seven NATO members, most notably Poland, are calling for sanctions against Russia over its expansionist stance, and US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin is arriving in Brussels for talks with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg. On Friday, French President Emmanuel Macron receives his Ukrainian counterpart in Paris for talks.
Source: Lifo.gr
