Today at 21:37
The head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, is concerned about the situation related to certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions that are not controlled by Ukraine. In his opinion, there is a threat of their actual accession to Russia.
It is reported by UA with links to Ukrinform.
“After reviewing the situation on the ground, I am particularly concerned that the non-government-controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions will continue to drift away from Ukraine, and they are being pushed to do so by the Kremlin’s efforts to achieve de facto integration (of these territories – ed.) with Russia. I don’t understand why all this concentration of forces is needed if you don’t have this in mind” – he said, speaking at a joint meeting of the Foreign Affairs Committee and the subcommittee on security and defense of the European Parliament.
Borrell stressed that he had seen first hand that Russian pressure on Ukraine over a military buildup was more than just rhetoric and was accompanied by a concentration of some 140,000 Russian troops on the borders. At the same time, Russia is offering the Western world an ultimatum to accept draft treaties on “security guarantees.”
“During this visit, I sent a clear message to both Ukraine and the international community in support of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity that this support remains strong. It is important that we called on Russia to de-escalate and implement the Minsk agreements, which have become a kind of mantra that we repeat over and over again, but they are very far from real implementation” – said the head of European diplomacy.
To remind, Josep Borrell said that a large-scale Russian attack on Ukraine is not the most likely scenario.
Read also: Ukraine Doesn’t Need the West to Defend It. We Need Help Preparing for War
