The United States believes Russia plans to invade Ukraine in early 2022

WASHINGTON – Rising tensions between Russia and the United States continue as Americans say they believe the United States is preparing for a major offensive against Ukraine “early in 2022”. Request, This has already been done by the Kiev authorities, Written in a document accessible to the Washington Post.

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The newspaper’s information was later confirmed by a White House official, who said they were expecting “175,000 Russian troops, more tanks, artillery and equipment.” The Russian presidential palace, cited by the Kommersant newspaper, denied the document and any plans for an invasion, accusing Washington of trying to worsen the situation and blaming Moscow.

On Friday, President Joe Biden said he was preparing unspecified measures to make the Russian invasion of Ukraine “very, very difficult” and that he would not accept “red lines” from anyone. The US President responded to a request made by Russian President Sergei Lavrov during a meeting with US President Anthony Bling in Stockholm on the sidelines of a meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

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The Russians are demanding “legal guarantees” that Ukraine will not join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, a US-led military alliance. They also demand that weapons not be placed near the border between the two countries.

Although Ukraine is not part of the alliance like other countries on Russia’s border, the country has been strengthening its ties with NATO for many years. This rapprochement intensified after the 2014 coup that overthrew Viktor Yanukovych’s pro – Moscow government.

The Kremlin, for its part, still sees the second largest country in the former Soviet bloc as part of its sphere of influence. Ukraine’s ambition to join NATO is seen as a disgrace by the Russians, who accuse Kiev and the United States of destabilizing behavior.

Video conference on Tuesday

The current tension raises fears of an open war on the border seven years after the annexation of the Crimean Peninsula in the Black Sea following a controversial civilian referendum. Since then, pro-Moscow separatist forces in the region have been waging a long-running conflict in eastern Ukraine against the local military.

Over the months, the Russians have been increasing their military presence on the border – with an estimated 70,000 troops in Washington and 94,000 in Kiev. They say they are retreating under the pretext that the Ukrainians will not join the main Western military alliance.

The classified document, obtained by the Washington Post, contains satellite images showing military concentrations at four different points. They also show movements recorded in the past month.

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During his visit to Europe, Blinken expressed his “deep concern” over Russia’s plans to launch a new occupation of Ukraine. “

Both Moscow and Washington on Saturday confirmed that the long-awaited video conversation between Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin would take place on Tuesday. In a statement, the White House said Biden would strengthen “its concerns about Russian military operations on the Ukrainian border” and strengthen US support for Kiev.

“The conversation will actually take place on Tuesday,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. – Bilateral relations, Ukraine, of course, and the implementation of the agreements reached at the Geneva Summit will be key items on the agenda.