U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday instructed Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy america and its allies will “reply decisively” if Russia additional invades Ukraine, the White Home mentioned in a press release.
The decision got here days after Biden held a second dialog in a month with Russian President Vladimir Putin amid tensions on Russia’s border with Ukraine, the place Russia has massed some 100,000 troops.
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“President Biden made clear that america and its allies and companions will reply decisively if Russia additional invades Ukraine,” White Home spokesperson Jen Psaki mentioned in a press release following the decision.
Biden and Zelenskiy mentioned preparations for a collection of upcoming diplomatic conferences to deal with the disaster, in line with the White Home.
Zelenskiy mentioned on Twitter that they mentioned joint actions on preserving peace in Europe and stopping additional escalation.
“The primary worldwide speak of the yr with @POTUS proves the particular nature of our relationships,” Zelenskiy tweeted. He mentioned the joint actions of Ukraine, america “and companions in preserving peace in Europe, stopping additional escalation, reforms, deoligarchization had been mentioned. We respect the unwavering assist of Ukraine.”
Representatives from U.S. and Russia are set to carry talks on Jan. 9-10 in Geneva, adopted by Russia-NATO Council talks and a gathering of the Group for Safety and Co-operation in Europe.
Biden has mentioned he instructed Putin it was essential for the Russians to take steps towards easing the disaster earlier than these conferences.
Putin’s overseas affairs adviser instructed reporters final week that Putin warned Biden that pursuit of sanctions “may lead to an entire rupture of relations between out nations and Russia-West relations will probably be severely broken.”
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Kremlin officers have confused they need ensures that any future enlargement of NATO should exclude Ukraine and different former Soviet nations. The Russians have demanded that the army alliance take away offensive weaponry from nations within the area.
Biden expressed assist for diplomatic measures to ease tensions whereas additionally reaffirming “america’ dedication to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” the White Home mentioned.
— Reporting by Jan Wolfe; Extra reporting by Pavel Polityuk and Matthias Williams
