Russia-Ukraine conflict: Growing tensions between Ukraine and Russia.
Nadi, Fiji:
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he would speak with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Saturday in a last-ditch effort to prevent a possible invasion of Ukraine.
“We continue to see very disturbing signs of Russian escalation, including new arrivals around the Ukrainian border,” Blinken said at a press conference in Fiji.
“If Russia is really interested in solving this crisis through diplomacy and dialogue, then we are ready to do it,” he said.
“But it has to happen in the context of de-escalation. So far, we’ve only seen escalation from Moscow,” he said.
“This is a critical moment. We are prepared for anything that can happen,” he said.
The top US diplomat reiterated that Washington and its allies would “rapidly” impose punitive sanctions on Russia if it invaded Ukraine, which he said could start “anything”. when”.
“We don’t know if President Putin made that decision,” he said.
“But we do know that he has been able to act for a short time.”
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