This article was originally published by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and is reprinted with permission.
Chances for a diplomatic solution to the crisis in Ukraine narrowed after the United States said a potential summit between President Joe Biden and Russian leader Vladimir Putin was off the agenda after Moscow’s latest aggression.
White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki, in an expected development, told reporters on February 22 that a proposed meeting of the two leaders was off the board for now following Putin’s decision to recognize two separatist regions in Ukraine as independent states and to send troops there.
Psaki did not rule out an eventual meeting of the two, but she said Biden would not meet the Russian president unless Russia de-escalates the situation in Ukraine by pulling its troops back.
“We’re never going to completely close the door to diplomacy,” she told reporters.
However, she added that “diplomacy can’t succeed unless Russia changes course.”
That came hours after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he had canceled a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that was planned for later this week.
“Now that we see the invasion is beginning and Russia has made clear its wholesale rejection of diplomacy, it does not make sense to go forward with that meeting at this time,” Blinken said at a joint news conference with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in Washington.
Despite his actions against Ukraine, Putin said on February 23 that his country was still ready to look for “diplomatic solutions” to the crisis, but he added that Russia’s interests were not negotiable.
“The interests of Russia, the security of our citizens, are nonnegotiable for us,” Putin said in a video address to mark the Defender of the Fatherland Day holiday.
More Western nations slapped sanctions on Russia, following moves by the United States, the European Union, and Britain to punish Moscow for its actions in Ukraine as the world nervously awaited Putin’s next step in the tense region.
Australia said on February 23 that it would align with the United States and Britain by targeting two Russian banks and set travel bans on eight members of Putin’s Security Council.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison — like leaders in the United States and Britain — said the sanctions were the first batch in an arsenal of potential penalties that Australia can use against Russia.
Meanwhile, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida also outlined measures against Russia on February 23, saying his government will ban the new issuance and distribution of Russian government bonds in Japan.
Japan will also ban travel by people linked to the two Ukrainian separatist regions and freeze their assets in the Asian country, Kishida said.
The moves come following Putin’s decision to recognize two separatist regions in eastern Ukraine as independent states and to send troops there, actions that were condemned by the West, the United Nations, and other countries and organizations.
Despite his actions, Putin said on February 23 that his country was ready to look for “diplomatic solutions” to the current crisis, but he stressed that Russia’s interests were not negotiable.
“Our country is always open for direct and honest dialogue, for the search for diplomatic solutions to the most complex problems,” Putin said in a video address to mark the Defender of the Fatherland Day holiday.
He added, though, that “the interests of Russia, the security of our citizens, are nonnegotiable for us.”
On February 22, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he has canceled a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov that was planned for later this week.
“Now that we see the invasion is beginning and Russia has made clear its wholesale rejection of diplomacy, it does not make sense to go forward with that meeting at this time,” Blinken said at a joint news conference with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in Washington.
The West has accused Putin of seeking a pretext for a full-scale invasion of Ukraine after Russia amassed more than 150,000 troops along the border, often blaming Kyiv for violence in the region.
“None of us will be fooled” by Putin’s claims about Ukraine, Biden said in a speech to the nation on February 22 as he announced the “first tranche” of sanctions against Russia for its aggression.
“This is the beginning of a Russian invasion of Ukraine,” Biden said, referring to Putin’s stated plans to send troops beyond the regions in eastern Ukraine that Russia-backed separatists claim to control.
Washington’s measures include blocking sanctions on two Russian banks and sanctions to block Moscow’s access to Western financial institutions.
Britain, the EU, and Canada announced similar sanctions against Moscow, with most saying more serious measures could be put in place should Russia conduct a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
In what could potentially be one of the most damaging actions, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said his country was putting the certifying process of the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia on hold in reaction to Moscow’s actions in Ukraine.
Scholz told reporters he had asked to suspend the review process by the German regulator for the $11 billion pipeline that is designed to deliver natural gas to Germany from Russia via the Baltic Sea.
The pipeline has long been opposed by the United States and some European countries who say it would increase Europe’s reliance on Russian energy supplies.
Washington has also said it will cause economic harm to Ukraine, enabling Moscow to reroute gas exports around Ukraine, depriving the country of billions of dollars a year in transit fees.
South Korea said it was in consultations with U.S. officials about possible sanctions.
Meanwhile, China — a Russian ally — said it has never considered that sanctions are the best way to solve problems.
A Foreign Ministry spokesman said that Beijing hopes the relevant parties can resolve their issues through dialogue and remain calm and show restraint.
Those remarks came after Russia’s upper house of parliament voted unanimously on February 22 to grant Putin’s request to use military force outside the country, a move further inflaming the crisis with Western countries.
The vote came after Putin sent a letter to the Federation Council asking to formalize a military deployment to regions in eastern Ukraine that Russia-backed separatists claim to control a day after Putin recognized their independence.
Putin later laid out conditions to end the crisis that has threatened to plunge Europe into war. These include Ukraine renouncing its ambition to join NATO and Western nations halting shipments to the country.
