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International leaders and high-ranking diplomats will gather in Munich, southern Germany, from Friday (18 February 2022) to Sunday for discussions on defense and security issues. Meanwhile, the Russian-Ukrainian crisis overshadowed the atmosphere of the annual conference, which is being held at the height of tension between Moscow and the West, without Russian participation.
Before the conference, German Foreign Minister Annalina Birbock said today, Friday (18 February 2022), in a statement, “With the unprecedented deployment of troops on the border with Ukraine and demands dating back to the Cold War era, Russia is challenging the basic principles of the European peace system,” calling on Moscow to show “serious efforts.” to de-escalate.
On Thursday, Russia once more presented a set of strategic demands that it wants from Western countries, which were mostly rejected. The Russian Foreign Ministry warned that if its demands were rejected, “Russia will be forced to act, especially by implementing measures of a military and technical nature.”
Russia, usually represented by its Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, will not participate in the Munich conference this year, but the Russian minister will meet his American counterpart Anthony Blinken next week, “provided that there is no Russian invasion of Ukraine,” the US State Department announced Thursday evening.
‘Demands dating back to the Cold War’
On the other hand, German Foreign Minister Annallina Birbock commented Friday on these demands, saying that they “go back to the Cold War.”
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