Russia announced on Saturday February 12 that it was going to reduce its diplomatic presence in Ukraine. She says she fears « provocations » from the Ukrainian authorities or from ” third country “.
With a consummate art of paradox, the spokeswoman for Russian diplomacy Maria Zakharova explained that the strong concerns expressed in recent days by Washington and other Western capitals regarding a Russian invasion meant that a risk of conflict was possible!
“Fearing possible provocations from the Kiev regime or third countries, we have indeed decided on a certain optimization of the staff of the Russian representations in Ukraine”she explained. “Given the significant influence that Washington and London have over Kyiv (…) we conclude that our American and British colleagues are apparently aware of certain actions being prepared in Ukraine that might considerably complicate the situation in the field of security. security “.
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Many Western embassies have indeed taken similar measures during the week. The US Embassy in Ukraine on Saturday ordered the withdrawal of its non-essential staff.
The United States, Canada and Australia have also called on their nationals to leave Ukraine as soon as possible. The latest country to date is Germany, which on Saturday recommended those of its nationals whose presence is not “imperative” to leave ” short term “ Ukraine, where a “military conflict cannot be ruled out”.
“Tensions between Russia and Ukraine have further increased in recent days due to the presence and massive movements of Russian military units near the Ukrainian borders”notes the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
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The Netherlands have issued the same instructions to their nationals. “In consultation with various allies, I call on all Dutch people to leave Ukraine”, Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra said in a statement. Most embassy staff will also leave Ukraine. “Travel advice for Ukraine changed to red today: it means it is too dangerous to travel in the country”, he pointed out. All travel is discouraged and Dutch people are advised to leave while commercial flights are still available.
The United States had alerted Friday, February 11 to a possible imminent Russian invasion of Ukraine. Words qualified as“hysteria” by Moscow, while Kiev called for ” calmed down “.
Five days following his meeting in Moscow with Vladimir Putin, Emmanuel Macron was to speak once more on the telephone on Saturday noon with his Russian counterpart. The night before, he had taken part in a videoconference with a dozen Western leaders: US President Joe Biden, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Prime Minister Canada’s Justin Trudeau, Polish President Andrzej Duda, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
The search for de-escalation
According to a press release from the Élysée, the leaders reaffirmed their desire to favor the diplomatic route to allow a de-escalation. They also reaffirmed their support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and for the work within the so-called Normandy format to find a solution to the crisis in Donbass, eastern Ukraine. .
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The situation was made extremely tense on Saturday by the numerous maneuvers of Russian troops engaged around Ukraine. More than 100,000 Russian soldiers with heavy weapons are deployed along the border with Ukraine. Russia is also conducting large-scale military exercises in Belarus, near Ukraine and Poland. It also launched new large-scale naval exercises in the Black Sea on Saturday. So many maneuvers that might lead to an invasion of Ukraine on three different flanks, if the order were given by the Kremlin.
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