By SUZANNE
LYNCH
GENEVA
BECKONS
U.S.-RUSSIA
MEETING SCHEDULED: Russian President Vladimir Putin held his annual year-end
press conference on Thursday in Moscow, where he confirmed one important piece
of news: Russian and U.S. officials will meet in Geneva next month for talks
amid tensions over the Kremlin’s troop buildup along Ukraine’s border. White
House press secretary Jen Psaki said no specific date or location had been
confirmed, while U.S. officials told the Wall Street Journal that there were
still differences over how to structure the talks.
Alarm
bells: Confirmation of the upcoming talks has unsettled many eastern NATO
members, who are alarmed about a revanchist Russia. Their concern is that by
granting Moscow a high-level meeting (even if it’s not a leader-to-leader
summit), U.S. President Joe Biden is dancing to Putin’s tune. As one EU
diplomat put it last night to Playbook, June’s Putin-Biden Geneva summit
already had “worrying elements” — “let’s hope this would be better.”
Background:
Washington has been warning for weeks that a Russian invasion of Ukraine is a
serious threat. But Biden’s subsequent comments — specifically, that future
talks with Moscow would address “Russia’s concerns relative to NATO” — have not
gone down well with some allies.
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Europe at
the table: Privately, officials in Brussels insist the EU will be central to
talks about security on the Continent. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken
apparently confirmed this during a recent call with EU top diplomat Josep
Borrell. A readout said both agreed “any discussion about European security
will happen in coordination and with participation of the European Union.”
What’s at
stake: With opinion divided about how serious to take Russia’s military
posturing, eastern NATO and EU members have called for a more assertive
approach. But the U.S. — and some prominent EU countries — have been pushing
for more diplomacy.
Talking
tough: Putin was defiant during Thursday’s press conference, calling for the
West to “immediately” meet Russia’s demand that the NATO military alliance not
expand any further eastward — a nonstarter for NATO. “It’s you who must give us
guarantees — and give them immediately,” he declared. Asked if he would invade
Ukraine, Putin pushed the question back on to the West: “Our actions will not
depend upon the negotiations, they will depend on the unconditional compliance
with Russian security demands.”
Background:
Even though NATO will not meet Russia’s demands, there is little appetite right
now for letting in Ukraine or Georgia, two countries Moscow wants more in its
orbit.
Real-world
reminder: As the West mulls its approach to Geneva, Russia’s defense ministry
on Thursday announced it would deploy hundreds of paratroopers for drills in
Crimea, territory Moscow annexed in 2014. And just a few hours later, new
satellite images showed Russia stationing more tanks, mobile rocket artillery
systems and advanced short-range ballistic missile batteries near the border
with Ukraine. In other words, Russia isn’t de-escalating.
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