Wednesday, December 15, 2021
security guarantee required
Xi backs Putin in conflict with NATO
In Ukraine crisis, Russia insists on concessions from the West. Along with Chinese President Xi, President Putin is now getting an influential advocate for his demands. Both countries see international law as “trampling under their feet”.
According to his presidential office, Russian President Vladimir Putin has garnered China’s support for his demand to force security guarantees from the West. Chinese President Xi Jinping assured Putin this in a video conference, said Yuri Ushakov, representative of the presidential office in Moscow.
Putin had earlier told Xi about his recent talks with US President Joe Biden. Xi assured Putin that he understood his concerns and supported the Russian initiative. Xi himself said, according to Chinese state media, the two countries should protect each other’s security interests. Xi told Putin that “some international forces” were interfering in the internal affairs of China and Russia under the guise of democracy. These forces will crush the recognized norms of international law and international relations.
Russia wants the US and NATO to guarantee that the Western military alliance will not expand further east or deploy certain weapons systems in Ukraine and other countries bordering Russia. The Russian President’s Office announced that concrete proposals for security guarantees were submitted to Deputy Secretary of State Karen Donfried today, Wednesday in Moscow. Donfried left for Moscow amid escalating tensions between the East and the West in the Ukraine crisis.
Russia accuses NATO of breaking its word
Ukraine has been trying for membership in NATO for some time now. The country has already received US military aid in conflict with its neighbor Russia. The Russian leadership argues that NATO’s eastward expansion threatens Russia and refutes assurances made by NATO in 1991 at the time of the collapse of the Soviet Union.
According to NATO, their own activities are purely defensive in nature and serve to prevent a new invasion by Russia. The government in Kiev fears an attack by the Russian army, which, according to Ukrainian sources, has gathered around 100,000 troops to prepare for them near the border.
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has threatened Russia with unprecedented and dire consequences if the Ukraine conflict escalates. The EU may react to any further aggression by tightening or expanding existing sanctions, it said in the EU parliament in Strasbourg, a day before the EU summit.
