US President Joe Biden said the United States has deployed no missiles on the territory of Ukraine, and was not planning to put them there in the future.
“Neither the US nor NATO have missiles in Ukraine. We do not have plans to put them there as well,” the US president said.
“We’re not targeting the people of Russia. We do not seek to destabilize Russia,” he added.
Meanwhile, Biden said Washington is ready to engage in diplomacy with Russia, but also to respond decisively if Moscow invades Ukraine, which he believes is still a possibility.
“The United States is prepared no matter what happens, to engage in diplomacy with Russia and our allies and partners to improve security and stability in Europe … and we are ready to respond decisively to a Russian attack on Ukraine. It is still very much a possibility,” Biden said.
On January 26, the US and NATO handed over written responses to Russia on Moscow’s security guarantees. The American side requested that the documents not be made public, although US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg enumerated their basic provisions.
According to these statements, the West did not make concessions to Russia’s key initiatives, but did indicate directions for further negotiations.
On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov the United States’ and NATO’s responses to Russia’s proposals on long-term legally binding guarantees of its security.
Lavrov informed the president about these responses, noting that NATO and the US gave a negative answer on Russia’s key concerns. He stressed that Moscow cannot be satisfied with these responses.
However, in his words, some of the responses are quite constructive. These are concrete measures concerning shorter-and medium-range missiles and a series of proposals on reducing military risks, building up trust and military transparency.
Source: Agencies
