WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden has warned his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin of dire economic consequences to any invasion of Ukraine, while the Kremlin leader said anti-Moscow sanctions would be a “colossal mistake.”
The 50-minute phone call — second in just over three weeks — did not yield any major breakthroughs, US and Russian officials said afterward, but did establish the tenor for upcoming in-person diplomatic talks between the two sides.
During the phone call, both presidents indicated support for further diplomacy on the tense standoff between Russia and Western-backed Ukraine. The call was requested by Putin.
“President Biden reiterated that substantive progress in these dialogues can occur only in an environment of de-escalation rather than escalation,” said White House press secretary Jen Psaki. Meanwhile, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Putin was “pleased” overall with the talks.
The leaders’ exchange set the stage for lower-level engagement between the countries, including a Jan. 9-10 U.S.-Russia security meeting, followed by a Russia-NATO session on Jan. 12, and a broader conference including Moscow, Washington and other European countries slated for Jan. 13.
Biden “made clear that the United States and its allies and partners will respond decisively if Russia further invades Ukraine,” Press Secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement.
“President Biden reiterated that substantive progress in these dialogues can occur only in an environment of de-escalation rather than escalation,” Psaki said.
Ushakov, referring to Washington’s repeated threats of economic sanctions as a response to a Ukraine attack, said this would be “a colossal mistake. We hope this will not happen.”
Ushakov also said that Russia is looking for a concrete “result” in the January talks in Geneva, while the White House said it, too, wanted action — de-escalation by Russia’s massive military presence on the Ukrainian border.
Washington and its European allies accuse Russia of threatening former Soviet territory Ukraine with a new invasion. Some 100,000 Russian troops are massed near the border of the country, where Putin already seized the Crimea region in 2014 and is accused of fomenting a pro-Russian separatist war that erupted that same year in the east.
Moscow describes the troop presence as protection against expansion of NATO, although Ukraine has not been offered membership in the military alliance.
Earlier this month, the Russians issued a sweeping set of demands, including guarantees that NATO not expand and a bar on new US military bases in former territories of the Soviet Union. The United States rejects what it calls a bid by Moscow to dictate independent countries’ futures.
– US support for Ukraine –
The January talks will see Russian officials sitting down separately with negotiators representing the United States, NATO and the regional OSCE security forum, which also includes the United States.
Russia’s delegation will be led by Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, and the US delegation by Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman.
Ukraine, which wants to join NATO but has been told it is far from being ready to win acceptance, is eager not to be cut out of any wider deal.
US officials have been at pains to insist that no decision will be taken behind the Ukrainians’ backs and that while US troops would not be sent to defend the country against Russia, ongoing deliveries of weapons and other military assistance are set to expand if Moscow attacks.
