Washington and Moscow will negotiate on January 10 over tensions over Ukraine and nuclear arms control issues, a White House spokesperson for security issues told AFP on Monday (December 27th).
"
The United States is eager to engage in dialogue with Russia,
" said the spokesperson for the National Security Council.
Read alsoRussia: Putin details his demands to contain NATO
A meeting between Russia and NATO could then take place on January 12, followed on January 13 by a meeting between Russia and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), of which the United States are part. United, added the spokesperson.
"
When we sit down to discuss, Russia will be able to put its concerns on the table and we will put ours on the table, in particular the activities of Russia,
" he declared.
Bilateral talks on January 10 will be held as part of the strategic security dialogue launched by Presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Poutin at their Geneva summit last June.
The Ukrainian question as a priority
Although this format is mainly devoted to the renegotiation of post-Cold War nuclear arms control treaties, the discussions will also concern the situation on the Russian-Ukrainian border, where Moscow has deployed tens of thousands of troops, said. a senior official in the US executive also wishing to remain anonymous. Meetings with NATO and the OSCE should particularly concern Ukraine.
Russia has been accused for more than a month by the West of having massed large forces on the Ukrainian border, with a view to a possible military intervention against Kiev. Moscow denies any bellicose intention and claims to be threatened by "
provocations
" from Kiev and NATO. It demands that the Alliance undertake not to expand into the former USSR.
In a move that breaks with the generally confidential nature of diplomatic discussions, Russia recently presented two draft treaties to prevent any expansion of the Atlantic Alliance, notably to Ukraine, and to end Western military activities near the borders. Russian. Washington said it was "
ready to discuss
" these documents, while stressing that they understood "
certain things that the Russians know unacceptable
".
Any agreement with Russia would take Ukrainian interests into account, the spokesperson for the National Security Council said on Monday.
"
Nothing that concerns our allies and partners
" will be negotiated "
without our allies and partners, including Ukraine
", he insisted.
"Deterrence and diplomacy"
“
President Biden's approach to Ukraine has been clear and consistent: bringing the (Atlantic) Alliance together in two directions, deterrence and diplomacy
,” he said.
We are united as an alliance when it comes to the consequences Russia would face if it made a move towards Ukraine
”. And to qualify: "
But we are also united in our desire to initiate a diplomacy governed by principles with Russia
". The identities of the people who will lead the January 10 negotiations on both sides have not been made public.
Moscow said on Saturday that more than 10,000 Russian soldiers had returned to their bases after month-long exercises in southern Russia, especially near the Ukrainian border.
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