US Warns Russia Against Another "Serious Mistake" in Ukraine | News from Germany about Russia

The United States warned Russia against another “serious mistake” with Ukraine, demanding clarification about troop movements near the Ukrainian border. The United States is “concerned about reports of unusual Russian activity near Ukraine,” said Secretary of State Anthony Blinken

“We have no clarity about Moscow’s intentions, but we know how it works,” Blinken said at a joint press conference in Washington with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba on Wednesday, November 10. “We are worried that Russia could make a serious mistake. trying to repeat what she did in 2014, when she concentrated forces along the border, invaded the sovereign territory of Ukraine, and at the same time falsely claimed that she was provoked, ” independence and its territorial integrity “.

Kuleba, in turn, said that Ukraine wants to cooperate with the United States to strengthen its defense and “does not intend to attack anyone.”

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said Russia’s military activity near the border with Ukraine is “unusual in size and scope.” “We urge Russia to make clear its intentions and adhere to the Minsk agreements,” Kirby said.

The Russian Federation refutes reports about the pulling together of troops to the border with Ukraine

Information about the activity of the Russian army near the border with Ukraine on October 30 appeared in The Washington Post. The publication said that recently videos showing the movement of Russian military equipment have been posted on social networks. On November 1, the Politico online resource published satellite images of the area near the village of Yelnya in the Smolensk region, possibly confirming information about the concentration of Russian army units in the area. Smolensk region borders on Belarus, but does not adjoin Ukraine.

Press Secretary of the Russian President Dmitry Peskov said on November 2 that the movement of Russian military equipment across Russia is an exclusively internal affair of the Russian Federation. According to the Russian Foreign Ministry, the reports of the American media about the movement of Russian troops to the border with Ukraine do not correspond to reality. On November 3, the official representative of the department, Maria Zakharova, called these publications an “informational burst” fired, including across Russia, “but in fact – in truth.”

In April 2021, as part of large-scale military exercises, Russia transferred about 120,000 soldiers and officers to the annexed Crimea and the border with Donbass, raising fears in Ukraine and the West that Moscow was preparing for a war with Ukraine. Ukrainian Ambassador to Germany Andriy Melnyk said that his country will be even more energetic in seeking NATO membership. The Russian Defense Ministry explained the transfer of troops as a reaction to the “threatening actions” of the North Atlantic Alliance and the need to check the combat readiness of the Russian army.

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Author: Tatiana Bondarenko, Maxim Filimonov