Russia considered possible on Monday a diplomatic solution to the Russian-Western crisis around Ukraine, at a time when Americans and Europeans fear an imminent invasion of this country by Moscow.
“I have to say there’s still a chance,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, responding to a question from President Vladimir Putin, according to television footage.
“Our possibilities (for dialogue) are far from exhausted,” said the minister, even proposing to “extend” and “expand” them, remarks much less offensive than those that have emanated from Moscow in recent weeks.
“Good,” replied Mr. Putin laconically.
Russia, which already annexed Crimea in 2014 and supports pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine, denies any aggressive intentions, but conditions any de-escalation on a series of “security guarantees”, including assurances that Ukraine will not will ever join NATO and a withdrawal from Eastern Europe of the Alliance’s military infrastructure.
The West deemed these demands unacceptable, but proposed increased dialogue on other issues, such as arms control.
Lavrov’s latest statements come as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is in Kiev on Monday to meet the Ukrainian president there before a trip to Moscow, in a new diplomatic attempt to defuse the Russian-Western crisis which is destabilizing European security.
“We expect immediate signs of de-escalation from Moscow,” Scholz said in a tweet before his arrival in Ukraine, again threatening Russia with “serious consequences” in the event of “new military aggression”.
Kiev has officially asked Russia to explain the deployment of tens of thousands of soldiers on its borders, in accordance with its commitments within the framework of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. A meeting is scheduled for Tuesday within the OSCE.
The United States has been insisting for days that Russia could invade Ukraine “at any time”, and many capitals have called on their nationals to leave the country as soon as possible.
In this explosive context, global stock markets rocked on Monday.
Digging trenches
In southeastern Ukraine, near the front line with pro-Russian separatists, residents are mobilizing in the run-up to an invasion.
“We are digging trenches in which Ukrainian soldiers can easily jump and defend themselves,” 15-year-old Mikhailo Anopa told AFP.
In Kiev, no signs of panic were visible. But Yury Fedinsky, a 46-year-old musician, chose to leave eastern Ukraine for the United States with his pregnant wife and four children.
“We are taking them to learn English in an American school, to see an alternative to what Putin would like for Ukraine,” he told AFP at Kiev airport.
Often accused of being too complacent towards Moscow because of its economic interests, Germany has raised its voice in recent days.
Olaf Scholz’s trip to Moscow is “probably the last chance” to obtain peace, Ukrainian ambassador to Germany Andrii Melnik judged Sunday evening on the German channel Bild TV, saying he believed that “a war becomes more and more inevitable.
Mr Scholz warned that devastating Western sanctions would be “immediate” in the event of a Russian invasion.
One of the subjects put on the table by the Americans, despite German reluctance, is the future of Nord Stream 2, a controversial gas pipeline built to transport Russian gas to Germany bypassing Ukraine.
Tensions are at their height, with more than 100,000 Russian soldiers massed near Ukraine’s eastern border and others engaged in maneuvers in Belarus to the north and the Black Sea to the south.
Ukraine nevertheless welcomed Monday “positive” negotiations with Belarus.
Put up “
In a telephone conversation on Sunday evening, US President Joe Biden and his Ukrainian counterpart agreed to pursue “diplomacy” and “deterrence” against Moscow.
Ukraine has also demanded an urgent meeting with Russia, accusing it of breaking OSCE rules by not sharing information about its troop movements.
If the meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, the participation of Russia is not confirmed.
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kouleba says Moscow ignored a request from Kyiv regarding the Vienna Document, an OSCE text that promotes transparency measures between the armed forces of the 57 OSCE member countries .
Many countries have asked their nationals to leave Ukraine or started to evacuate their embassies and the Dutch company KLM has suspended its flights.
France, for its part, has decided to continue to operate in the country, only asking its citizens on the spot to “prepare for all intents and purposes a few reserves” of water and food.