Blinken promised Kuleba "additional steps" in response to the decision of the Russian Federation on the "DNR" and "LNR" | News from Germany about world events

The United States will “react quickly” to Russia’s decision on the so-called independence of the “DNR” and “LNR”. This was stated by US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken in a telephone conversation with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba. A statement following the conversation was circulated on Monday, February 21, by the press service of the US State Department.

Blinken reaffirmed Washington’s continued support for Kiev. The interlocutors discussed the “drastic measures” announced by the United States on February 21 and noted that “additional steps will be taken.”

The head of the American foreign policy department added that he was looking forward to meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine in Washington, during which the parties would continue the discussion.

Russian Foreign Ministry: Lavrov is ready to meet with Blinken

Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, commenting on the possibility of negotiations between Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, said on February 24 that Moscow was ready for them.

“Even in the most difficult moments … we say: we are ready for the negotiation process,” she said. “We are always in favor of using diplomacy,” Zakharova said.

US prepares economic sanctions

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on February 21 that US President Joe Biden would issue an executive order prohibiting American individuals from investing, trading and financing in the “DPR” and “LPR”. According to Psaki, the presidential decree will also “ensure the right to impose sanctions on any person who decides to work in these areas of Ukraine.” These restrictive measures are not related to economic sanctions that the United States is “preparing in coordination with allies and partners in the event of further Russian invasion of Ukraine,” the statement said.

Russia recognized the independence of the “DNR” and “LNR”

Earlier, on February 21, Vladimir Putin ordered the introduction of Russian troops into the territory in the Donbass, controlled by pro-Russian separatists, after Russia recognized the independence of the self-proclaimed “people’s republics”.

The head of EU diplomacy, Josep Borrell, called these actions “another direct aggression against Ukraine, a violation of its territorial integrity and sovereignty” and called for an immediate meeting of the UN Security Council. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron condemned Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to recognize the independence of the “DPR” and “LPR”, calling it a “clear violation” of the Minsk agreements.

The German Foreign Ministry sharply condemned the recognition of the independence of the “DNR” and “LNR”. The Kremlin’s actions blatantly violate international law, said German Foreign Minister Annalena Burbock, promising that Germany would give a coordinated response to Putin’s decision with partners.

See also:

A Brief History of the Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation
The collapse of the Soviet Union and the creation of the CIS
In December 1991, Ukraine, Russia and Belarus documented the collapse of the USSR. Moscow apparently hoped to maintain influence through the CIS and cheap gas supplies. But it turned out differently. The Russian Federation and Belarus created a union state, Ukraine increasingly looked to the West. In the photo: Leonid Kravchuk, Nursultan Nazarbayev, Boris Yeltsin and Stanislav Shushkevich during the official founding of the CIS in Almaty.

A Brief History of the Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation
Legacy of the USSR and the Budapest Memorandum
Ukraine inherited from the USSR almost a million strong army and the 3rd largest nuclear arsenal in the world. Kiev refused the missiles, handing them over to Russia in exchange for economic assistance and security guarantees (Budapest Memorandum of 1994). While the West did not reciprocate Kiev and was not going to integrate it into its structures, the reaction of the Russian Federation was restrained. In the photo: Russian and US leaders Boris Yeltsin and Bill Clinton.

A Brief History of the Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation
Cracks in Post-Soviet Friendship: Tuzla Conflict
The first major diplomatic crisis between Moscow and Kiev occurred under President Putin. In the fall of 2003, Russia suddenly began building a dam in the Kerch Strait towards the Ukrainian island of Tuzla. Kiev considered this an attempt to redistribute borders. The conflict was resolved after a personal meeting of the presidents. Construction was stopped, but the first cracks appeared on the facade of friendly relations between the two countries.

A Brief History of the Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation
Orange Revolution 2004
In the presidential elections in Ukraine in 2004, the Russian Federation actively supported the pro-Russian candidate Viktor Yanukovych, but the Orange Revolution prevented him from winning amid accusations of fraud. Pro-Western politician Viktor Yushchenko became president. His victory became the starting point for changes in the policy of the Russian Federation, designed to prevent what Moscow calls “color revolutions.”

A Brief History of the Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation
Shutting off Ukraine’s “gas valve” in the 2000s
During Viktor Yushchenko’s presidency, the Russian Federation twice shut off Ukraine’s “gas valve” – in 2006 and 2009, which led to interruptions in transit supplies to Europe. In the photo: a Gazprom employee at the Sudzha gas measuring station, 200 meters from the Ukrainian border, Kursk Region, Russia, 2009.

A Brief History of the Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation
The promise of NATO membership
The key event happened in 2008. At the NATO summit in Bucharest, US President George W. Bush tried to get Ukraine and Georgia to receive a Membership Action Plan (MAP). Putin sharply objected, making it clear that he did not fully recognize the independence of Ukraine. As a result, Germany and France blocked Bush’s plan. Ukraine and Georgia were promised NATO membership, but no date.

A Brief History of the Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation
Ukraine’s course towards the European Union
It was not possible to move quickly towards joining NATO, and Ukraine set a course for economic rapprochement with the EU. In the summer of 2013, the Russian Federation began to exert massive pressure on Kiev, almost cutting off Ukrainian exports at the border. The Yanukovych government has suspended preparations for signing an association agreement with Brussels. Soon protests began in Ukraine, in February 2014 Yanukovych fled to Russia.

A Brief History of the Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation
Russian annexation of Crimea
A power vacuum emerged in Ukraine, in March 2014 Russia annexed Crimea. This was a turning point, the beginning of an undeclared war. Pictured: Russian military in Crimea (Simferopol, March 2014).

A Brief History of the Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation
War in Donbass
At the same time, Russian and local paramilitary structures provoked an outbreak of separatism in the Donbass, “people’s republics” were proclaimed in Donetsk and Lugansk, which were led by people who had come from the Russian Federation in unmarked uniforms. Kiev reacted slowly, waiting for the presidential elections at the end of May 2014, and only then decided on a large-scale use of force.

A Brief History of the Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation
Birth of the Normandy Format
In early June 2014, in France, at events marking the 70th anniversary of the Allied landings in Normandy, newly elected President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko met for the first time with his Russian counterpart Putin through the mediation of the leaders of Germany and France. This is how the “Norman format” was born.

A Brief History of the Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation
“Ilovaisky cauldron”
In the summer of 2014, the Ukrainian army began to push back the separatists, but at the end of August, Russia, according to Kiev, used its army on a large scale in the Donbass. Moscow denies this. The peak of the conflict was the defeat of the Ukrainian forces near Ilovaisk. The war along the entire front line ended with the signing of a ceasefire in Minsk in September, which was quickly broken.

A Brief History of the Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation
Positional war continues
In early 2015, the separatists went on a broad offensive. Kiev accused Moscow of using an unmarked army, the Russian Federation denied everything. Ukrainian forces were defeated near the city of Debaltseve. Then, with the mediation of Germany and France, “Minsk-2” was signed, an agreement that still remains the main document for the settlement of the conflict. None of its points has been fully implemented.

A Brief History of the Ukrainian-Russian Confrontation
The concentration of Russian troops on the border of Ukraine
In 2021, there was a new aggravation. Russia twice, in spring and autumn, drew up its troops to the western borders. Ukrainian and Western intelligence reports about the threat of a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine. To defuse the situation, a series of international negotiations took place in the West. However, the Russian Federation demands guarantees that Ukraine will not join NATO and lets know that it is not going to withdraw troops yet.
Author: Roman Goncharenko