In his latest remarks, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that Russia had to choose between dialogue and confrontation.
While speaking at CNN’s “State of the Union” show, he said, “There’s a path of dialogue and diplomacy to try to resolve some of these differences and avoid a confrontation.”
“The other path is confrontation and massive consequences for Russia if it renews its aggression on Ukraine. We are about to test the proposition about which path President Putin is prepared to take.”
Speaking about the talks in Geneva, he said that a positive outcome would rely on Russia’s readiness to get rid of its aggressive posture.
Also read | Ahead of talks on Ukraine, Blinken says NATO prepared to respond to Russian aggression
“So if we’re actually going to make progress, we’re going to have to see de-escalation, Russia pulling back from the threat that it currently poses to Ukraine,” he said.
US and NATO have repeatedly voiced concerns over Russia’s plan to invade Ukraine, a charge that Kremlin denies. However, there have been various reports, citing satellite images, indicating that Russia has amassed thousands of troops near the Ukrainian borders.
Earlier, Blinked had slammed Russia for justifying its troop build near Ukrainian borders. He also said that the NATO alliance is prepared to respond forcefully to any Russian aggression.
“It (Moscow) claims that Ukraine is threatening Russia. That Ukraine seeks to provoke a conflict. And that the Russian troop build-up and the tanks and heavy artillery are all purely defensive. That’s like the fox saying it had to attack the henhouse because its occupants somehow pose a threat,” Blinken said.
(With inputs from agencies)
