Russia Says Ready to Continue Diplomacy amid Ukraine Crisis

By Staff, Agencies

Russia said it will continue diplomatic talks with the West to try to defuse a security crisis in which it has amassed a huge force within striking distance of Ukraine.

In a televised exchange between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday, the latter said “there is always a chance” to reach an agreement with the West over Ukraine.

Lavrov told Putin that exchanges with leaders in European capitals and Washington showed enough of an opening for progress on Russia’s goals to be worth pursuing.

“I would suggest continuing,” Lavrov said in televised remarks. “Fine,” Putin replied.

Lavrov told Putin the United States had put forward concrete proposals on reducing military risks, but that responses from NATO and the European Union – which has been at pains not to let Moscow divide its members – had not been satisfactory.

“It remains to be seen whether these are real negotiations or designed to merely delay the invasion that [Putin] has said he might undertake while he continues to slice away at the West’s position,” the International Republican Institute’s Stephen Nix said from Washington, DC.

On Monday, the US announced it would temporarily relocate its embassy in Kyiv to the western Ukrainian city of Lviv near the Polish border due to what it called the “dramatic acceleration in the buildup of Russian forces.”

In a statement announcing the move, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the US would continue to push for a diplomatic solution.

“The path for diplomacy remains available if Russia chooses to engage in good faith. We look forward to returning our staff to the Embassy as soon as conditions permit,” Blinken added.

US President Joe Biden, who had spoken to Putin over the weekend, held a phone call with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday.

“The leaders discussed their recent diplomatic engagements with Ukraine and Russia,” the White House said in a statement describing the call.

“They also reviewed ongoing diplomatic and deterrence efforts in response to Russia’s continued military build-up on Ukraine’s borders and reaffirmed their support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

For its part, the British government said Biden and Johnson “agreed there remained a crucial window for diplomacy and for Russia to step back from its threats towards Ukraine.”

Russia has positioned more than 100,000 troops near Ukraine’s borders but denies planning to invade, accusing the West, which has sent a flurry of officials to Moscow and Kyiv, of hysteria.