'We don't want wars, but...': Russia blatantly threatens Ukraine with 'measures in response'

Created: 01/28/2022, 12:57 p.m

By: Anna-Katharina Ahnefeld

The Ukraine crisis is getting worse.

Russia is attracting attention with a disguised threat of war.

All information in the news ticker.

• In the Ukraine conflict*, Russia is continuing to deploy troops on the border.

  A military invasion is feared.

• Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov has issued an indirect threat of war.

• This news ticker is updated regularly.

Moscow – The Kremlin has issued an indirect war threat in the Ukraine crisis.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov called on the OSCE to provide Moscow with answers to questions about security in Europe.

A corresponding letter will be sent to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) on Friday, he said in a radio interview.

A phone call with Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, who recently traveled to Moscow to meet Lavrov, is also planned for Friday, he said.

Only the day before, Baerbock had defended the course of the traffic light in dealing with the Ukraine conflict.

Russia wants OSCE foreign ministers to explain the principle of “indivisible” security in Europe.

We don't want wars.

But we also don't allow our interests to be trampled on, our interests ignored.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov

From Moscow's point of view, this means that a country - such as Ukraine - must not strengthen its own security at the expense of the interests of another state - that is, Russia.

Among other things, Russia justifies its resistance to the admission of Ukraine* to NATO because it sees itself threatened by the advance of the military bloc.

Russia sees itself connected to parts of Ukraine through a centuries-long history and criticizes the fact that the USA and NATO have declared the country their sphere of influence - without considering Moscow's interests.

Ukraine crisis: Lavrov wants "no wars, but..." - telephone call with Baerbock planned for Friday

"If our attempts to agree on mutually acceptable principles of ensuring security in Europe do not bring results, then we will take measures in response," Lavrov said.

Russia* had presented NATO and the United States with a list of demands in which, among other things, an end to the eastward expansion of the military alliance is required.

NATO and the USA rejected this.

Russia is now analyzing the West's written responses and is currently continuing to focus on dialogue.

Next, Moscow expects a response from the OSCE, Lavrov said.

Vladimir Putin (r), President of Russia, and Sergey Lavrov, Foreign Minister of Russia, take part in the Libya conference in the Federal Chancellery.

© Hannibal Hanschke/dpa

"If it depends on Russia, then there will be no war.

We don't want wars.

But we also do not allow our interests to be trampled on, our interests ignored,” Lavrov said.

With regard to the conflict in eastern Ukraine, he once again emphasized that the crisis could be resolved by implementing the peace plan negotiated in Minsk (Belarus) with Franco-German mediation.