Russia-USA summit: Blinken speaks of "gun on the head" - USA predicts Russian attempt to split

Created: 01/10/2022, 12:10 PM

From: Astrid Theil

Talks between the USA and Russia should defuse the Ukraine crisis.

However, there is great skepticism.

There is only hope in a few areas.

Update from January 10th, 10.45 a.m.:

A bilateral conversation between the USA and Russia on the recent tensions surrounding Ukraine began in Geneva on Monday.

US Deputy Foreign Minister Wendy Sherman came to an official meeting with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov after a brief preliminary talk on Sunday evening, as the US State Department announced.

The meeting will take place in the US embassy not far from the European headquarters of the United Nations.

The focus is on the Russian troop build-up on the border with Ukraine and Moscow's demand for security guarantees from NATO.

Russia-USA summit: Blinken speaks of "gun on the head" - USA predicts Russian attempt to split

Update from January 10, 9:20 a.m.:

Representatives of the USA and Russia will meet on Monday in Geneva for negotiations on the Ukraine crisis. The talks focus on the Russian troop build-up on the border with Ukraine and Moscow's demand for security guarantees from NATO. However, both sides were already dampening expectations of the meeting. It is the start of a series of important negotiations this week.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Sunday that it was difficult to make progress "in an atmosphere of escalation with a gun at the head of Ukraine".

However, he emphasized that neither a withdrawal of US troops from Eastern Europe nor a promise not to expand NATO were up for negotiation.

A US government official said it was not up to Moscow to decide which countries other states would enter into alliances with.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks in the State Department meeting room.

Blinken threatened with "massive consequences" if Russia escalated further on the Ukrainian border, but at the same time emphasized that a diplomatic solution to the crisis was still possible.

© Andrew Harnik / dpa

In an interview with the State Agency Ria Novosti, Vice Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov made it clear: "We are not going there with an outstretched hand, but with a clearly formulated task that must be solved under the conditions we have formulated." He spoke of "realistic" expectations to the conversations.

"According to the signals that we have heard from Washington and Brussels in the past few days, it would be naive to assume that there will be progress - especially rapid progress," said the 61-year-old.

Russia-USA summit: Blinken speaks of a "gun on the head of Ukraine"

At the start of the diplomatic efforts in Geneva, Ryabkov meets US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman. A representative of the Foreign Ministry emphasized in advance that there would be no negotiations that affect other countries. In principle, this only happens if they are sitting at the table. The meeting takes place within the framework of the strategic security dialogue that Presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin agreed at their meeting in June. It's the third round. It takes place in the US embassy.

The US warned that Russian media would likely misrepresent the content of the talks on Monday and speak of concessions on the US side.

A government official said he would not be surprised if the Russian side spread false reports about US concessions to "create a division among the allies."

Russia and USA meet - Insider precludes admission: "Moscow will not decide on that"

First report from January 9th, 4.40 p.m .:

Geneva / Washington, DC - USA and Russia will discuss the Ukraine crisis in Geneva on Sunday and Monday (January 9th and 10th). The United States has agreed in advance to discuss the two countries' missile systems and military exercises. "There are some areas in which we think it might be possible to make progress," said a senior US official and government official in a conference call with journalists, according to the dpa.

The aim of the talks between the Russian and US government representatives is to defuse the tensions between the two countries.

The background to the current crisis is a Russian troop deployment on the border with Ukraine.

Washington and the EU accuse Moscow of preparing a new invasion of Ukraine.

Russia denies such plans.

For its part, Vladimir Putin's government is resisting the admission of further Eastern European countries to NATO and is demanding a guarantee that Ukraine will never become a member of the alliance.

Ukraine crisis: USA warns Russia not to invade Ukraine

The US government official ruled that out: he said it was not up to Moscow to decide which countries other states would enter into alliances with.

"In connection with NATO, we call this an open door, and neither Russia nor any other country will slam it."

Russian President Vladimir Putin (l) and US President Joe Biden are willing to hold talks in order to defuse the current crisis.

(Archive image) © Patrick Semansky / AP / dpa

The US is warning Moscow of a renewed military escalation in the Ukraine crisis. In such a case, the government representative held out the prospect of financial and economic sanctions and the armament of Ukraine by the USA. However, exact punitive measures were not mentioned. The

recently reported that one of the possible sanctions the United States is discussing with allies is the exclusion of Russia's largest financial institutions from global transactions. But trade bans for certain technology products from the United States are also conceivable.

Two days after the bilateral talks in Switzerland, an exchange between Russia and NATO should take place: a meeting of the NATO-Russia Council is scheduled for January 12 in Brussels - the first in two and a half years.

Thereafter there will be talks in Vienna on January 13th within the framework of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

Putin's demand: There are a few points where there is hope for an agreement

Above all, Putin made the dismantling of NATO's military presence in the border region with Russia a requirement for the bilateral talks. "Russia has said that it feels threatened by the prospect of offensive missile systems in Ukraine," said the US official. But they do not have such an intention. So this is "an area where we may be able to reach an agreement if Russia is ready to make a commitment". At Moscow's request, the talks should also focus on the future of certain missile systems in Europe.

Finally, Washington is ready to discuss the possibility of mutual restrictions on the size and scope of military exercises carried out by Russia as well as the US and NATO, the government official said.

Nevertheless, there is skepticism regarding the upcoming talks: "We will only know during these talks whether Russia is ready to negotiate seriously and in good faith".

USA “realistic instead of optimistic”: Warning of fake news from Russia

In all likelihood, there will be a "first conversation" on Sunday evening before the main hearing takes place on Monday.

According to current information from the US State Department, US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov will meet on Sunday evening.

Expectations were dampened on the US side.

The attitude of the USA in these talks is "realism instead of optimism".

The official stressed that these would be "exploratory talks" that would not result in firm commitments.

Above all, warnings were given against Russian disinformation campaigns: in order to unsettle the allies, false Russian media reports about possible concessions by the USA could be circulated.