US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called the crisis between Russia and Ukraine a “dangerous moment” when he addressed the United Nations Security Council in New York on Thursday (17).
“The most immediate threat to peace and security is Russia’s imminent aggression against Ukraine. The stakes go far beyond Ukraine. This is a time of danger for the lives and safety of millions of people, as well as for the foundation of the Charter of the United Nations and the rules-based international order that preserve stability throughout the world,” said Blinken.
“We must address what Russia is doing now for Ukraine,” he said.
Blinken said US intelligence clearly indicates that the buildup of Russian forces signals an attack on Ukraine in the “coming days”.
At the same meeting, Blinken declared that he is this Thursday in the Security Council “not to start a war, but to prevent one”.
“I am here today not to start a war, but to prevent one. The information I’ve presented here is validated by what we’ve seen unfolding before our eyes for months. And remember that while Russia has repeatedly dismissed our warnings as melodrama and nonsense, they have been steadily amassing more than 100,000 troops on Ukraine’s borders, as well as the ability to conduct a massive military strike. It’s not just us saying this. Allies and partners see the same thing,” said Blinken.
The US Secretary of State urged Russia to use diplomacy as a solution to the crisis.
Blinken said he sent a letter to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov proposing that they meet next week in Europe.
He also proposed meetings of the NATO-Russia Council and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.
“These meetings can pave the way for a summit of key leaders in the context of de-escalation to reach understandings on our mutual security concerns. As leading diplomats of our nations, we have a responsibility to make every effort to ensure that diplomacy is successful,” added Blinken.
He said Russia is likely to respond by saying the US is “stoking hysteria” around the crisis.
“The Russian government can announce today, without qualifications, mistakes or deviations, that Russia will not invade Ukraine, clearly declared to the world – and then demonstrate it by sending its troops, its tanks, its planes, back to the hangars and sending diplomats at the negotiating table. In the coming days, the world will remember this commitment. Or the refusal to assume it,” he concluded.
Tank fire in the east of the country
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Thursday that a gunshot from a tank operated by Russian-backed separatists had been recorded in the east of the country.
“This projectile came from the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine, which are controlled by Russia,” Kuleba told a news conference in Kiev after meeting with the UK Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs Liz Truss.
Source: CNN Brasil
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