Sputnik

Russian President Vladimir Putin is shown during his talks with U.S. President Joe Biden via videoconference successful the Bocharov Ruchei residence successful the Black Sea edifice of Sochi, Russia, Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2021. The video telephone betwixt U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin, during which the 2 leaders are expected to sermon tensions implicit Ukraine. (Mikhail Metzel, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

MOSCOW – Russia's subject warned the Ukrainian authorities Thursday against trying to settee a separatist struggle successful eastbound Ukraine with force, a connection that adds to the tensions sparked by a Russian unit buildup adjacent the Ukrainian border.

Officials successful Ukraine and the West person said the amassing of troops whitethorn bespeak plans by Moscow to invade its ex-Soviet neighbor, but Russian officials person repeatedly denied harboring specified plans.

Gen. Valery Gerasimov, main of the Russian General Staff, called media reports astir Russia allegedly preparing an onslaught connected Ukraine “a lie" and charged that Ukraine is to blasted for escalating tensions successful its war-torn eastbound concern heartland, known arsenic Donbas, by deploying caller weapons there.

Gerasimov warned Kyiv against utilizing unit successful the area. “Any provocations by Ukrainian authorities to settee the Donbas problems with unit volition beryllium suppressed,” helium said astatine a briefing with overseas subject attaches.

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Russia and Ukraine person been locked successful a bitter tug-of-war since 2014, erstwhile Moscow annexed the peninsula of Crimea and threw its value down a separatist insurgency successful eastbound Ukraine. The warring betwixt Ukrainian forces and Russia-backed rebels has since killed much than 14,000 people.

Ukraine and the West accused Russia of sending its troops and weapons to backmost the separatists, which Moscow has repeatedly denied, with the Kremlin insisting that Russia is not a enactment to the conflict.

Tensions person reignited again this twelvemonth amid reports of a Russian unit buildup adjacent Ukraine’s border, which Ukrainian and Western officials feared could bespeak Moscow’s program to invade its ex-Soviet neighbor.

President Joe Biden said this week the U.S. would instrumentality a much nonstop relation successful diplomacy to code Russian President Vladimir Putin’s concerns implicit Ukraine and Europe astatine large, part of a broader effort to dissuade the Russian person from ordering a destabilizing caller penetration of Ukraine.

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U.S. quality officials person determined that Russia has stationed astir 70,000 troops adjacent its borderline with Ukraine and has begun readying for a imaginable penetration arsenic soon arsenic aboriginal adjacent year.

Moscow has denied plans to onslaught Ukraine and successful crook blamed Ukraine for its ain subject buildup successful the war-torn east, alleging that Kyiv mightiness effort to reclaim the areas controlled by the rebels by force. Ukrainian officials person denied an volition to bash so.

Putin has urged the West to supply guarantees that would preclude NATO from expanding to Ukraine and discussed the tense concern astir Ukraine with Biden connected Tuesday.

Biden, arsenic good arsenic officials successful Europe, warned Putin that Russia could look achy economical consequences if it invades Ukraine.

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