Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that Moscow is pursuing normalization of relations with Washington and called on the US to also take responsibility in these efforts. (Source: Press TV) In the context that the summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Joe Biden will take place in a week in Geneva, Switzerland, Deputy Minister Ryabkov said: “This is really an important event in the world. international agenda. We hope this event will answer many questions.” The Russian diplomat said that he did not know after this contact whether a sustainable trend towards solving problems and normalizing relations could be guaranteed, but Russia would pursue this. . This is the crux of all the tasks Russia is trying to solve today, Ryabkov said, calling on the Biden administration to be “as responsible and capable as Moscow” to achieve it. this. The Russian Deputy Minister said that at the current stage of development of international relations, time passes faster than what the two countries have done, referring to the Treaty on the Reduction of Strategic Offensive Arms (New START). The Russian diplomat said that, despite just renewing the Treaty, “the US midterm elections are approaching and the countdown to the 5-year extension of New START is happening very quickly”, so need not waste time and focus on achieving a certain new modern paradigm of arms control. “We need not only to find a solution to the question of whether there is an opportunity to de-escalate tensions, but also to the problem of a new ‘security equation’ in relations between the two countries. Russia is also ready for this.” (according to TASS)

State Duma Building of the Russian Federation. Photo: Sputnik/Natalya Seliverstova From the morning of May 19, the plenary session of the State Duma began with a discussion on this issue. According to Mr. Vyacheslav Volodin – Chairman of the State Duma of the Russian Federation, after summarizing the voting results, the Russian Duma has agreed to terminate the validity of the Open Skies Treaty. A day earlier, the Russian State Duma Committee on International Affairs also unanimously supported the annulment of the Open Skies Treaty. Before the vote, the official representative of the Russian President, Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, presented a report on the situation surrounding the Treaty, stating that the Russian side had given the United States enough time to think about the Treaty. Wish Open Sky. “If Washington is really interested in coming to an exchange of opinions and reconsidering the wrong decision of the previous administration, they can immediately do so,” Ryabkov added. This treaty affording the Contracting States the right to fly over any of each other’s territories to monitor military activity and to conduct such flights on a regular basis has become one of the constructive measures. trust in Europe after the Cold War. The Open Skies Treaty was signed in Helsinki (Finland) on March 24, 1992, and ratified by Russia on May 26, 2001. In May 2020, the United States started the process of withdrawing from the Open Skies Treaty, which was completed on November 22. In response to this decision, on January 15, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced the promotion of domestic procedures for exiting the Treaty. Russian President Vladimir Putin has transferred to the State Duma a bill on the cancellation of this agreement.

RIA quoted Peskov as saying: “On the territory of Ukraine, reducing the escalation of tensions in Donbass can only be achieved if the Ukrainian Armed Forces stop military provocations”.

It is known that on April 13, US President Joe Biden had a phone call to Russian President Vladimir Putin. During the conversation, Mr. Biden especially expressed concern about the Russian military’s increased military presence in Crimea and on the border with Ukraine.

The Kremlin cites conditions for de-escalation of tensions in Donbass. Photo: RIA

President Biden stressed the US’s unwavering commitment to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. Besides, President Biden has proposed to his Putin counterpart to hold a summit in a third country in the near future.

Concerning developments, in the last weeks of March, parties to the conflict in Ukraine accused each other of violating the ceasefire and transferring military equipment to the communication line.

“The Kremlin is concerned that a civil war will continue in Ukraine. If civil war and large-scale hostilities continue near our borders, it would pose a threat to Russia’s security, ”Peskov said.

Meanwhile, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, when referring to the issue of “pulling troops” to the Ukrainian border, he stressed that Russia is operating on its own territory and that these military measures are necessary, and do not disturb foreign partners.

Specifically, over the past several months, representatives of the US administration led by President Joe Biden have repeatedly threatened Russia that it will pay a “very high price” for the situation in the Donbass.

Moscow responded to Washington on warning of ‘it will cost money for the Donbass’. Illustrative image / Reporter

Before the above developments, Moscow gave an official response. Specifically, according to Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov, Washington’s aforementioned statements are unacceptable. Russia will continue to defend the self-proclaimed republics of the Donbass, as well as the interests of its Russian-speaking residents, and threats from the other hemisphere of the planet will only convince Moscow of the correctness of the planet. my movement.

“They talked about a high price, but they never specified. What they have done so far, first we have done enough research, second we have adapted to this” …

Ryabkov noted with regret that the current Ukrainian authorities and their Western patrons have concluded that the field situation is not helping to become more positive.

In addition, Deputy Minister Ryabkov mentioned the fact that the military alliance of NATO, the United States and a number of other countries are deliberately promoting Kiev to confront the Russian Federation, assisting Ukraine in increasing military pressure. declaration in the East.

In related developments, the NATO Air Force has deployed more fighter jets to countries close to Ukraine as a readiness move for the worst case scenario.

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