Russia pushes US on security guarantees, says military option on Ukraine still likely

Russia says it is primarily important for the United States to respond on security guarantees regarding the situation around Ukraine, warning of a possible military action if NATO fails to come up with a political solution to ease Moscow’s concerns.

The Russian Foreign Ministry released last week two draft documents on the provision of legal security guarantees from Washington and NATO, which included a promise that the US-led military alliance would give up any military activity in Eastern Europe and Ukraine. The White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan announced on Friday that Washington is prepared for dialogue with Moscow over its security demands and will present its own concerns.

Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Monday that Moscow had so far received no response from the United States and underlined that Russia was ready for a military response if NATO kept ignoring Moscow’s security concerns.

"I said that we would find forms to respond, including by military and military-technical means if NATO ignores Moscow’s concerns again," Ryabkov was quoted by Russia’s TASS news agency as saying. 

"I reaffirm this. We will have to balance the activities that are of concern to us, because they increase the risks, with our countermeasures."

The senior Russian diplomat stressed that Russia would seek to prevent military confrontation, saying that Moscow was aware of the need to hold a dialogue to avoid serious implications.

Asked about Washington’s determination whether it would respond to the security guarantees, Ryabkov said, "I think they'll try to turn this into a slow-moving process, but we need it to be urgent, because the situation is very difficult, it is acute, it tends to become more complicated.”

Russia publishes security demands from NATO amid Ukraine escalation

Russia for the first time spells out an array of security guarantees that it wants the United States and its NATO allies to commit to, in an attempt to defuse the escalation of a dangerous security situation near its border.

Russia and the US-led NATO have recently been at odds over Ukraine. Western countries accuse Russia of preparing for an invasion of Ukraine by amassing troops and armaments near the border with that country.

Moscow says it is entitled to move its military freely within its borders and that it is taking precautionary steps because of increased NATO activity near its territory.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly warned the West against crossing the Kremlin's red lines by staging military exercises in and sending lethal weaponry to Ukraine. During a video call with US President Joe Biden earlier this month, the Russian leader demanded guarantees against NATO's expansion eastward.

Konstantin Gavrilov, head of the Russian delegation to negotiations on Military Security and Arms Control in the Austrian capital of Vienna, also said that relations between Moscow and NATO had reached a "moment of truth".

"The conversation needs to be serious and everyone in NATO understands perfectly well despite their strength and power that concrete political action needs to be taken, otherwise the alternative is a military-technical and military response from Russia," Gavrilov was quoted as saying by RIA news agency.

NATO military expansion to Ukraine 'direct threat' to Russia's security: Putin

The Russian leader emphasized the need for immediate talks with the West  to come up with a clear, international legal agreements that would prevent NATO’s further expansion east.

Kremlin: Still too early to assess West's reaction

Also on Monday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow had still not received a substantive response to its demands from the West.

Peskov said it was too early to assess the West's response, but the information from "various sources" about a readiness to discuss the ideas was positive.

Asked separately about a Belarusian proposal to host Russian nuclear weapons in the event of similar deployments in its vicinity by the West, the Kremlin spokesman said Moscow had numerous options.

"It's no secret the deployment of different types of armaments near our borders that could pose a danger would require corresponding steps to be taken to balance the situation. There are all sorts of options here," he added.

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