From the point of view of the Russian leadership, the transfer of 2,000 soldiers to Europe announced by the USA is further heating up the Ukraine conflict. The Kremlin accused the US government on Thursday of allowing the situation to escalate. Moscow will now take measures “to ensure its own security and interests,” said spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
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“We call on our American partners not to further increase tensions on the European continent,” Peskov said, according to the Interfax agency. Russia has criticized the fact that the United States and its NATO allies responded to its offers to talk about a new security architecture in Europe by stationing more soldiers in Eastern Europe and supplying arms to Ukraine.
Meanwhile, in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed himself as a mediator between Russia and Ukraine. He called for a peaceful solution to the conflict.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy received Erdogan with military honors. “Turkey is ready to do its part to end the crisis between the two countries,” said the Turkish leader. “We call on all parties to exercise restraint and maintain dialogue.” To this end, he suggested organizing a Ukraine-Russia summit in Turkey.
Turkey has good relations with both Russia and Ukraine. Ankara delivers combat drones to Kiev, for example – according to Zelenskyj, production is to be set up in Ukraine. Russia, in turn, supplies Turkey with gas. In addition, both countries have large-scale military operations in Syria, for example – albeit on different sides.
The Kremlin had recently reacted cautiously to Erdogan’s efforts as a mediator between Kiev and Moscow. According to both countries, Erdogan and his Russian colleague Vladimir Putin want to meet in Turkey. But it was unclear when that would happen.
Mutual blame
With Western reports of more than 100,000 Russian troops deploying near Ukraine, there are fears that the Kremlin is planning an invasion of its neighboring country. Moscow denies that. It is also considered possible that the Russian side wants to stir up fears in order to persuade NATO to make concessions on demands for new security guarantees.
Amid the severe tensions, the US Department of Defense announced on Wednesday that it would send around 2,000 soldiers to Europe – 300 of them to Germany. 1700 forces are to be transferred to Poland. In turn, 1,000 American soldiers would be transferred from the Federal Republic to Romania.
Ukraine recently warned of “panic” despite the massive troop movements. Defense Minister Oleksiy Resnikov said on Thursday that he currently assesses the risk of a “significant escalation” as “low”. What is more to be feared is an “internal destabilization” fueled by Russia.
Efforts to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict have been going on for weeks – but without any tangible results. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) announced on ZDF that he would be traveling to Moscow “soon” for talks with Putin.
In the evening, the President phoned France’s head of state Emmanuel Macron again – it was the third phone call between the two politicians within a few days. Macron also spoke to Selenskyj, as Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Ukrainian television in the evening. He did not initially give any details. Macron has also considered a trip to Moscow.
According to the Kremlin, Putin once again made it clear that Russia is concerned with “long-term, legal security guarantees” for Moscow. NATO and the USA had recently rejected central demands from Russia, but showed themselves willing to talk. The two presidents also gave their assessments of the latest diplomatic efforts to ease the situation. (dpa, AFP)
