Biden’s message to Russia for other NATO members – US sanctions on Putin, Lavrov

The deployment of additional forces in Europe, to strengthen US operational capabilities in the Old Continent and to support NATO allies, was ordered by the US President on Friday. A White House spokeswoman said the United States would not send US troops to Ukraine, but the Pentagon said it would provide additional security assistance.

Mr Biden said in a statement that “the United States will defend every inch of NATO territory”. Earlier, he had contacted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, to whom Biden said he had conveyed to him the ongoing financial, humanitarian and security support provided by the United States.

In a statement on the phone, the US president said: “At a time when President Putin is threatening the very foundations of international peace and security, NATO is proving once again that it stands for freedom and democracy. As I said yesterday, “The United States will defend every inch of NATO territory. Our commitment to Article 5 (commitment of the collective defense of the members) is iron-clad.”

“President Putin has failed in his goal of dividing the West. NATO is more united and determined than ever, and NATO will keep its door open to those European states that share our values ​​and that may one day seek to join our alliancehe clarified, sending a message to Moscow, which had previously threatened Finland and Sweden on this issue.

US sanctions on Lavrov-Putin

The White House announced on Friday that the United States would impose sanctions on Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov as Washington seeks to increase pressure on Moscow following the invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces.

The rare but not unprecedented move by the United States to impose sanctions on a head of state comes just one day after Russian forces invaded Ukraine.

According to Reuters, White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said the decision to target Putin, Lavrov and other officials came after US President Joe Biden telephoned European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

Banning entry into the US will be “part” of those sanctions. He did not elaborate, however, saying details of the “historic” sanctions against a Russian president would be announced later.

Earlier in the day, EU states and Britain agreed to freeze all European assets of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday, as Ukrainian leader V. Zelensky called for stronger sanctions against Russia. in his country.

The United States on Thursday imposed sanctions on Russia’s two largest banks and members of the Russian elite, as well as on heads of state such as Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro and Syria’s Bashar al-Assad.

Source: Capital

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