par Dmitry Antonov
MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia said it was ready on Thursday to appoint a negotiator “at any time” to discuss with the United States the security guarantees it is calling for to defuse the crisis in Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Riabkov was “ready to fly to any neutral country at any time” to start talks.
He also said that Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Joe Biden, who spoke by video conference on December 7, could meet again before the New Year, although nothing specific has been agreed.
Ukraine and the United States say Russia has deployed more than 90,000 troops near the border with Ukraine and may be on the verge of invading the country, which Moscow denies.
Russia, for its part, says it feels threatened by the possibility of NATO’s eastward expansion and the Alliance’s deployment of offensive weapons systems in countries close to Russia.
Vladimir Putin also discussed the situation in Ukraine with Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday.
(With the participation of Alexander Marrow, written by Mark Trevelyan; French version Valentine Baldassari, edited by Sophie Louet)
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