Tag: Blinken

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Russia-Ukraine Warfare: U.S. Will Give $2 Billion Extra Assist, Blinken Says

Russia-Ukraine War: U.S. Will Give $2 Billion More Aid, Blinken Says

Recognition…Doug Mills/The New York Times

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, during a visit to Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital, on Thursday said he would inform Congress that the United States intends to send an additional $2 billion in long-term military assistance to Ukraine and 18 other countries. who are at risk of a Russian invasion.

Separately, President Biden has approved an additional $675 million in military assistance to Ukraine, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III said.

The combined aid totals $13.5 billion in Biden administration aid to Ukraine since the Russian invasion in February.

Mr. Blinken’s visit to Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs was his second since the start of the Russian invasion. The State Department has not publicly announced his trip in advance for security reasons.

His visit comes as Mr. Austin meets with allied defense ministers at a monthly meeting of the Ukraine Contact Group, which aims to coordinate the flow of military aid to Ukraine. The arrival of Western equipment, particularly longer-range HIMARS missile systems, has enabled Ukrainian forces to attack Russian military infrastructure behind front lines and aided a counteroffensive in the south — although some military experts argue aid to date is insufficient to avert this War decided in favor of Ukraine.

“Ukrainian forces have begun their counter-offensive in the south of their country and they are integrating the capabilities that we have all deployed to help themselves fight and retake their sovereign territory,” Mr Austin said at the start of the meeting at Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany.

“This contact group must position itself to provide long-term support to the brave defenders of Ukraine,” he said. “That now means the continuous and determined flow of skills.”

Russian forces are struggling to seize new territory but show no signs of retreating from the invasion, which US estimates have left tens of thousands of casualties on both sides and left vast areas of eastern and southern Ukraine in ruins. On Wednesday, President Vladimir V Putin delivered a defiant address, whitewashing the enormous toll of the war and the faltering performance of his army, and proclaimed at an economic conference in Russia’s Far East: “We have lost nothing and will lose nothing.”

In Germany, Mr Austin said the new weapons package included air-launched HARM missiles designed to seek out and destroy Russian air defense radar; guided multiple launch rocket systems, known as GMLRS; howitzers and other artillery; armored ambulances; and small arms.

The State Department said the $2 billion package, which will be drawn from pools of funds already approved by Congress but whose specific allocation requires Congress approval, would be split roughly half between Ukraine and 18 other nations. These are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia.

The money will be used to “build the current and future capabilities” of the armed forces of Ukraine and other countries, including by strengthening their cyber and hybrid warfare capabilities, particularly to counter Russian aggression, the State Department said.

The money will also help integrate non-NATO members into the alliances’ armed forces.

On Thursday afternoon, Mr Blinken met with Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dmytro Kuleba. He previously visited the US embassy and a children’s hospital that treats children injured in Russian attacks.

Mr Blinken was also introduced to Patron at the hospital, a Jack Russell terrier who Ukrainian forces have credited with helping excavate hundreds of Russian landmines. Mr. Blinken declared the dog “world famous”.

— Michael Croley and Matthew Mpoke Bigg

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Politics

Blinken Says American Diplomats Have Left Kabul

Blinken Says American Diplomats Have Left Kabul

WASHINGTON — American diplomats have left Afghanistan, and the U.S. Embassy in Kabul will remain closed, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken said on Monday, after the military announced that it had completed its withdrawal from the country.

The disintegration of diplomacy was a stunning turnabout from plans to stay and help Afghanistan transition from 20 years of war and to work toward peace, however tenuous, with a government that would share power with the Taliban. This month, Mr. Blinken had pledged that the United States would remain “deeply engaged” in Afghanistan long after the military left.

But with the Taliban firmly in control, what was one of the largest U.S. diplomatic missions in the world will for now be greatly scaled back, based in Doha, the Qatari capital, and focused largely on processing visas for refugees and other immigrants.

“Given the uncertain security environment and political situation in Afghanistan, it was the prudent step to take,” Mr. Blinken said in remarks at the State Department.

He sought to portray the departure as a “new chapter of America’s engagement with Afghanistan.”

“It’s one in which we will lead with our diplomacy,” Mr. Blinken said, commending the U.S. diplomats, troops and other personnel who had worked at the embassy, which just last month had employed around 4,000 people — including 1,400 Americans.

Left uncertain was whether American efforts to stabilize the Afghan government would continue — the main thrust of years of painstaking work and negotiations with leaders in Kabul that were supported by billions of dollars in American taxpayer funding.

Instead, Mr. Blinken said that any engagement with the Taliban — a longtime U.S. enemy that seized power when President Ashraf Ghani fled Afghanistan on Aug. 15 — “will be driven by one thing only: our vital national interests.”

Exactly four weeks earlier, on Aug. 2, Mr. Blinken had left little doubt that the Biden administration intended to keep the U.S. Embassy in Kabul open.

“Our partnership with the people of Afghanistan will endure long after our service members have departed,” he said then. “We will keep engaging intensely in diplomacy to advance negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban with the goal of a political solution, which we believe is the only path to lasting peace.”

As many as 200 American citizens, and tens of thousands of Afghans, were left behind in a two-week military airlift that Mr. Blinken called one of the largest evacuation efforts in U.S. history. He demanded that the Taliban keep its word and allow them to leave safely once they had exit documents in hand.

Understand the Taliban Takeover in Afghanistan

Card 1 of 5

Who are the Taliban? The Taliban arose in 1994 amid the turmoil that came after the withdrawal of Soviet forces from Afghanistan in 1989. They used brutal public punishments, including floggings, amputations and mass executions, to enforce their rules. Here’s more on their origin story and their record as rulers.

Who are the Taliban leaders? These are the top leaders of the Taliban, men who have spent years on the run, in hiding, in jail and dodging American drones. Little is known about them or how they plan to govern, including whether they will be as tolerant as they claim to be.

What happens to the women of Afghanistan? The last time the Taliban were in power, they barred women and girls from taking most jobs or going to school. Afghan women have made many gains since the Taliban were toppled, but now they fear that ground may be lost. Taliban officials are trying to reassure women that things will be different, but there are signs that, at least in some areas, they have begun to reimpose the old order.

More than 123,000 people were evacuated from Kabul in recent weeks, including about 6,000 Americans.

Mr. Blinken also said that the United States would closely watch the Taliban’s efforts to stanch terrorism in Afghanistan, as the group has said it will do, and would continue to work with the international community to provide humanitarian aid to millions of Afghans who need food, medicine and health care after decades of war and political instability.

He struck a resolute tone about the diplomatic retreat, and in reminding Americans about the cost of the conflict.

America’s longest war, with its casualties and the resources that were sunk into it over the past 20 years, “demands reflection,” Mr. Blinken said.

“We must learn its lessons, and allow those lessons to shape how we think about fundamental questions of national security and foreign policy,” he said. “We owe that to future diplomats, policymakers, military leaders, service members. We owe that to the American people.”

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Politics

‘It’s Extra Enjoyable’: Germany Presents Blinken a Gushing Welcome

‘It’s More Fun’: Germany Offers Blinken a Gushing Welcome

BERLIN – Foreign leaders often feign indifference to changes in American governments. But during his two-day visit to the German capital, Foreign Secretary Antony J. Blinken’s impotent hosts did little to hide their relief over the end of the Trump era and the revival of American relations with Germany.

Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas raved about a joint appearance with his counterpart in a chic Berlin beer garden on Thursday and remembered his first conversation with Mr Blinken after he became Foreign Minister.

“At the end of the call,” he said, “I couldn’t help saying, ‘Tony, I still have to get used to the fact that I can talk to the US Secretary of State and always be the same.” View – because it used to be different was. ‘”

Germany, said Maas, was “very happy that the US is now on our side again”. Then, after explaining the global importance of this layer, Mr. Maas paused with a tall glass of beer in front of him.

“It’s more fun too,” he added.

The day before, the outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel sounded visibly relieved next to Mr Blinken.

“We are pleased that the American states, to quote the American President Joe Biden, are back on the international, multilateral stage,” said Merkel. She and President Biden, she said, “could have agreed on a common approach to global problems.

That was rarely the case in Germany when it came to President Donald J. Trump.

And so Blinken’s visit underscored the German joy at the departure of an American president who was hostile to Germany, a European economic power and important NATO ally, and described it as an economic competitor and free rider among the American defense. After the resignation of Mr. Trump’s ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell, a member of Ms. Merkel’s party even said that Mr. Grenell acted like “the representative of a hostile power”.

Mr. Blinken made it clear that those days are over.

“I think it is fair to say that the United States has no better partner, no better friend in the world than Germany,” he told Maas on Wednesday at a joint appearance at the German Foreign Ministry, a mixture of joy and pride.

Mr. Blinken’s visit was followed by President Biden’s first trip to Europe as President of several days, during which he announced the return to America’s traditional transatlantic leadership role. Mr Biden’s itinerary did not include Germany, but he met Ms. Merkel twice at meetings of European leaders and plans to receive Ms. Merkel at the White House next month.

“The new American government has reached out and we should take it,” said Federal Minister of Economics Peter Altmaier before leaving for a visit to Washington on Wednesday, according to Deutsche Welle.

Behind the scenes, however, it wasn’t just happy hours and happy conversation.

Mr Blinken and Mr Biden are strongly opposed to completing the Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline from Russia to Germany, saying it will give Moscow an impact on Europe’s energy security and threaten Ukraine, which makes around $ 1 billion annually on an existing one Pipeline that Russia might at some point no longer be able to use.

Mr Biden waived Congress sanctions last month against the Russian company that built the pipeline and its German chairman, effectively admitting that there was an attempt to halt the project – at the time Mr Biden left office started, was more than 90 percent complete – not worth the probable cost of German-American relations.

Now American and German officials are discussing ways to mitigate Russian benefits from the project, including trying to ensure the Kremlin “cannot use gas as a coercive weapon against Ukraine or anyone else,” Blinken told the House Foreign Affairs Committee earlier this month .

Neither man wanted to give more details about these conversations. After hearing several questions on this subject during his performance with Mr. Blinken, Mr. Maas smiled weakly.

“We can probably save the world as a whole, but people would still ask us about Nord Stream 2,” said Mass. “Well, we have to accept it and live with it.”

German officials celebrated America’s engagement at a Wednesday conference on the future of Libya, attended by Mr Blinken and other State Department officials, including U.S. Envoy for Libya Richard Norland.

The United States was a half-hearted participant in the first conference of its kind, held in January 2020. Mr Blinken’s predecessor, Mike Pompeo, made a brief appearance at the event and left the country before it was completed.

On Wednesday, Mr Mass said the Biden administration was “very committed to this dossier,” adding in an implicit dig by the Trump team, “much more active than we expected in recent years”.

After years of civil war and military intervention by foreign powers – including Egypt, Russia, Turkey and Egypt and the United Arab Emirates – Libya is trying to find influence on a stable and independent political base after the 2011 coup of his long-time dictator Muammar el-Gaddafi.

Wednesday’s conference, at which a group of nations reiterated previous calls for Libya to hold elections scheduled for December 24th and the withdrawal of all foreign forces from the country, brought little new progress.

A senior administrative official said behind the scenes that one obstacle was Turkey’s insistence on its military trainers being legally in the country under an agreement with a previous Libyan government. However, US officials are hoping that as a first confidence-building measure, an agreement could be drawn up that would allow several hundred mercenaries, each representing different factions in the country’s recent battle, to be returned to their homes.

On Thursday morning, Mr. Blinken visited the haunting memorial to the murdered Jews of Europe in Berlin to commemorate the beginning of a joint German-American “dialogue” on Holocaust issues, which is intended to combat increasing anti-Semitism and Holocaust denial.

“We help present and future generations learn about the Holocaust and learn from it,” said Blinken of his late stepfather Samuel Pisar, a survivor of the Nazi camp who lost his family in the Holocaust.

The day ended happily, however, when Mr. Blinken and Mr. Mass – sitting on stools under an outer tent, shorn jackets and ties and sipping beer – answered questions from current and former participants in the German-American educational exchange programs. (Mr Blinken, who joked that he was given a smaller glass on request, just seemed to take a sip.)

Mr. Blinken, a lifelong musician, remembered taking a road trip to Hamburg as a teenager while living in Paris and doing an improvised series there with his rock band, whose other members he called “talented, unlike me” played from gigs in a bar. ”

Mr Maas and Mr Pompeo had civil relations, but it was clear that the German diplomat, born a year after Mr Blinken, had a special chemistry with the new Foreign Minister.

“I’m very excited to see that the two of you seem to be very, very good friends,” remarked one law student who asked a question. “And that gives me hope for the future of German-American cooperation.”

Melissa Eddy contributed to the coverage.

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Politics

Blinken to go to Center East following Israeli-Palestinian violence

Blinken to go to Middle East following Israeli-Palestinian violence

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks at a news conference following meetings at the Danish Foreign Ministry, Eigtved’s Warehouse, in Copenhagen, Denmark, May 17, 2021.

Saul Loeb | Reuters

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken will head to the Middle East this week on the heels of nearly two weeks of fighting between Israel and Palestinians, the White House said Monday.

“Following up on our quiet, intensive diplomacy to bring about a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, I have asked my Secretary of State, Tony Blinken, to travel to the Middle East this week,” President Joe Biden said in a statement, emphasizing that part of the trip will involve Blinken meeting with Israeli leaders “about our ironclad commitment to Israel’s security.”

Blinken will also focus on the U.S.-Palestinian relationship, which the Biden statement described as “our Administration’s efforts to rebuild ties to, and support for, the Palestinian people and leaders, after years of neglect.”

Israel’s security Cabinet voted Thursday to approve a tentative cease-fire after 11 days of fighting with Hamas in Israel and the Gaza Strip, the worst violence the area has seen since 2014. Negotiations leading to the cease-fire were led by Egypt, the only country with open communication lines with Israel and Hamas, the U.S.-designated terrorist group that governs the Gaza Strip.

Israeli airstrikes and internecine fighting killed more than 220 Palestinians in Gaza over 11 days, including more than 100 women and children. During that time Hamas fired more than 4,000 rockets into Israel, killing 12 people, including two children.

Biden came under fire from human rights groups and progressive Democrats for perceived inaction as the conflict escalated and for his administration’s continued financial and military support for Israel. His administration has revived some support for Palestinians, restoring $235 million in U.S. aid — most of which will go to the UN’s refugee program for Palestinians — which was completely cut under the Trump administration.

The U.S. provides Israel with $3.8 billion annually in military aid. In early May before the fighting began, the Biden administration approved selling $735 million in precision-guided munitions to Israel — a sale that several progressive Democrats are now trying to halt.

A Palestinian woman carries her child amid the rubble of their houses which were destroyed by Israeli air strikes during the Israel-Hamas fighting in Gaza May 23, 2021.

Mohammed Salem | Reuters

The violence in the blockaded Gaza Strip, the Israeli-occupied West Bank, Jerusalem and several places in Israel was triggered by protests surrounding the threat of evictions of some Palestinians from their homes in east Jerusalem by the Israeli government.

The demonstrations, largely peaceful but including rock throwing, brought on a harsh Israeli response, such as firing stun grenades into the Al-Aqsa Mosque complex during prayers in the holy month of Ramadan. In response, Hamas fired rocket barrages from Gaza into Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and elsewhere in Israel.

Israel then launched airstrikes that the military said was targeted at Hamas, but in the process bombed multiple civilian homes as well as a building housing foreign media outlets including The Associated Press.

Israel has occupied the West Bank and east Jerusalem since the 1967 war, building Jewish settlements that the majority of the international community considers illegal under international law. Israel rejects this.

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Politics

Blinken, in Ukraine, Warns of Twin Threats: Russia and Corruption

Blinken, in Ukraine, Warns of Dual Threats: Russia and Corruption

Kiev, Ukraine – Foreign Minister Antony J. Blinken told the Ukrainian President on Thursday that the United States strongly supported his country’s sovereignty against Russia’s military aggression, but also warned that the embattled country was threatened by “internal forces”, including powerful oligarchs who thrive on corruption.

Mr Blinken also said that despite Russia’s recently announced plans to withdraw many of the 100,000 troops it raised in alarming violence on the border with Ukraine this spring, a clear military threat remained.

“Russia has withdrawn some forces, but significant forces remain on the Ukrainian border,” noted Blinken. “And so, on a fairly short-term basis, Russia has the ability to take aggressive action if it so wishes.” Mr Blinken added that the United States “was watching this very, very closely”.

Mr Blinken spoke at a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who thanked the first high-ranking Biden official to visit Kiev since President Donald J. Trump left office. The former president embroiled Mr Zelensky in a global scandal that the Ukrainian leader clearly hopes to forget.

When asked if the efforts of Mr. Trump’s personal attorney Rudolph Giuliani in 2019 had “thrown back” efforts to drive corruption out of Ukraine’s political system, Mr. Zelensky boasted of his reform record, saying he hoped it would the matter was closed.

“Let’s not talk about the past,” he said. “Let us let the past be the past and discuss the future.”

This can be difficult given an active FBI investigation into Mr. Giuliani that culminated in a robbery of his home and office last week. Federal agents reportedly sought evidence of his role in removing the American ambassador to Ukraine in May 2019, allegedly at the behest of Mr Giuliani’s Ukrainian staff.

For his part, Mr Blinken maneuvered a question with Mr Giuliani, but reminded Mr Zelensky – whose reform report has received mixed reviews – that “the effective fight against corruption is one of the most important issues for the Ukrainian people and for their lives is of vital importance improve. “

“There are strong interests against reforms, against the fight against corruption,” said Blinken. “This includes external forces like Russia, but also internal forces like oligarchs and other powerful people who are pursuing their own narrow interests.”

As Ukraine struggles to remove corruption from its political system, fueled in part by a Kremlin attempting to destabilize its pro-Washington government, the country fights off a Moscow-backed, pro-Russian separatist insurgency in the east of the country Country. According to the United Nations, the fighting in the region has claimed more than 13,000 lives.

To sustain this conflict and weather any new offensive by Russia, Ukrainian officials are keen to get more military support and potential arms sales from Washington, which is currently sending Ukraine more than $ 400 million in military aid annually. Mr Blinken said that the Biden administration was working “very actively” on the issue but was not offering any further details.

But Mr Blinken underscored his concern about Ukraine’s military plight with a morning visit to an outdoor memorial to soldiers who died in the conflict in the east. Known as the Wall of National Remembrance, the memorial features hundreds of photographs of the fallen strolling along an outer wall of St. Michael, a 12th-century monastery and church.

In driving rain, Mr. Blinken, accompanied by high-ranking figures from the Orthodox Church of Ukraine and the country’s foreign minister, knelt down to lay flowers at the foot of the wall.

Mr. Blinken later told Mr. Zelensky that the pictures of the fallen had touched him personally.

“We were able to pay tribute to those who lost their lives defending Ukrainian democracy,” he said. “And it’s very, very moving to be on the wall.”

“You see every one of them in these pictures – and you think of the mothers and fathers, the sisters and brothers, the children who lost loved ones in defending Ukraine, and it’s very, very powerful,” added he added.

In September 2019, a CIA whistleblower announced that in a phone call with Mr. Zelensky in June 2019, Mr. Trump had pressured him to announce an investigation into Mr. Biden, then a Democratic presidential candidate, and Mr. Biden’s son Hunter. who worked for a Ukrainian energy company. Mr Trump withheld U.S. military aid to Ukraine when he pressed his request. The episode led to Mr. Trump’s first impeachment trial and a painfully uncomfortable experience for Mr. Zelensky.

In a remark to U.S. Embassy staff during a virtual visit with them, Mr Blinken alluded to the chaos of events that led to Mr Trump’s impeachment – including the politicized removal of American Ambassador Marie Yovanovitch – created at the State Department .

“I know the last few years have been particularly difficult,” he said. “Even before Covid, Ukraine – and this mission – got embroiled in affairs, and that shouldn’t have been the case. And one thing that is very important is that politics stop at the C Street door, and it is now. ”

After his meetings with Ukrainian officials, Mr. Blinken held a round table on corruption and reform, which was attended mainly by representatives of civil society who were “at the forefront” in a second struggle for democracy in Ukraine.

During the joint appearance with Mr. Blinken, the Ukrainian guide said he hoped that Mr. Biden himself could visit Ukraine soon. Mr Blinken cited travel restrictions due to the coronavirus, but said the American President “will welcome the opportunity at the right time”.

Mr. Blinken was joined by a longtime ally of the Ukrainians, Victoria Nuland, the newly confirmed Secretary of the Foreign Ministry for Political Affairs. Ms. Nuland, a career foreign service official and senior State Department official in the Obama administration, left the administration in early 2017 but was selected as the number 3 official in the department that year.

Ms. Nuland is known in Kiev – and was insulted in the Kremlin – for distributing food in 2013 on the Independence Square of the Ukrainian capital, known as the Maidan, in the prelude to the overthrow of the Russian Viktor F. Yanukovych. supported the President of Ukraine at the time. It was this revolution in March 2014 and Putin’s fears that the former Soviet republic could be brought closer into harmony with the West that sparked Putin’s annexation of the Ukrainian Crimean peninsula and his instigation of an uprising in eastern Ukraine.

Your presence was clearly appreciated. At the beginning of a morning meeting with Mr. Blinken, Foreign Minister Dmytro Kubela congratulated Ms. Nuland on her appointment. He laughed when he remarked that one of the few major events on the Maidan that he had missed was “your cookies,” even though she said they were actually sandwiches she passed around, not cookies.

In Russia, Ms. Nuland is seen very differently: An article in July 2020 on the website of the Kremlin-funded RT network called her the “Maidan midwife” and characterized her Hawkish political views on Russia as “stupid, delusional and dangerous”.

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Blinken warns Moscow of penalties amid troop buildup close to Ukraine

Blinken warns Moscow of consequences amid troop buildup near Ukraine

State Secretary Antony Blinken holds a press conference at the end of a NATO Foreign Ministers meeting on March 24, 2021 at the Alliance’s headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.

Olivier Hoslet | Reuters

WASHINGTON – Foreign Minister Antony Blinken said Sunday he was concerned about the number of Russian troops gathering at the Ukrainian border and warned Moscow that “there will be consequences for aggressive behavior”.

“I have to tell you that I have real concerns about the actions of Russia on the borders of Ukraine. More Russian armed forces are gathered at these borders than ever since the first invasion of Russia in 2014,” Blinken said during an interview on “Meet the press “” Sunday.

“President Biden was very clear about this. If Russia acts ruthlessly or aggressively, there will be costs, there will be consequences,” said Blinken, adding that the United States was discussing the growing aggression at the border with allies and partners.

On Friday, Blinken partly spoke to his German and French colleagues about “Russian provocations against Ukraine”.

Last week, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the Biden administration had consulted with NATO allies about rising tensions and ceasefire violations.

“The United States is increasingly concerned about the recent escalating Russian aggression in eastern Ukraine, including Russian troop movements on the Ukrainian border,” she told reporters on Thursday, describing the matter as “deeply worrying.”

Continue reading: The US is concerned about Russian troop movements near Ukraine and is discussing regional tensions with NATO allies

In recent weeks, Moscow has increased its military presence along the Ukrainian border, raising concerns in the West about a burgeoning military conflict between the two neighboring countries. The Russian Defense Ministry has announced that it will conduct more than 4,000 military exercises this month to review the readiness of its armed forces.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy visits positions of armed forces near the front with Russian-backed separatists during his working tour in the Donbass region of Ukraine on April 8, 2021.

Press service of the Ukrainian President | Handout | via Reuters

Last month, the Ukrainian government said four of its soldiers were killed by Russian shelling in Donbass. Moscow has denied that it has armed forces in eastern Ukraine. Since 2014, Kiev has been fighting against Russian-backed separatists in a conflict that, according to the United Nations, killed at least 13,000 people.

Continue reading: The West is waiting for Putin’s next move as tensions between Russia and Ukraine mount

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday that Moscow would move its armed forces over Russian territory at its own discretion, calling the escalating tensions “unprecedented”. He also suggested that Ukraine was on the verge of civil war that would threaten Russia’s security.

“The Kremlin fears that civil war could resume in Ukraine. And if civil war, extensive military action, resumes near our borders, it would endanger the security of the Russian Federation,” Peskov told the Associated Press . “The continued escalation of tensions is unprecedented.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine of resuming “dangerous provocative actions” when calling Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday, according to a Kremlin report. The Kremlin previously said it was concerned about mounting tensions in eastern Ukraine and feared that the Kiev armed forces would try to resume conflict.

Last week the Pentagon reiterated its call for the Kremlin to explain its decision to mobilize troops to the border.

“The Russians are busy doing a military build-up along the eastern border of Ukraine and in Crimea, which is still part of Ukraine, and that is worrying. And we want to know more about what they are doing and what their intentions are. That is that we do not believe that this is conducive to security and stability there, “Pentagon spokesman John Kirby told reporters on Friday.

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin will meet in person with NATO Secretary Jens Stoltenberg at Alliance headquarters in Brussels later this week.

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Blinken says China threatens NATO, requires joint strategy to counter Beijing

Blinken says China threatens NATO, calls for joint approach to counter Beijing

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks after a meeting of NATO foreign ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels on March 24, 2021.

Virginia Mayo | AFP | Getty Images

WASHINGTON – Foreign Minister Antony Blinken on Wednesday issued a strong charge against China’s extensive use of coercive measures, calling on NATO allies to work with the US to push Beijing back.

Blinken said in a speech at NATO headquarters in Brussels that the US would not force its European allies to “choose between us or them”. However, he made it clear that Washington sees China as an economic and security threat to NATO allies in Europe, particularly in the area of ​​technology.

“There is no question that Beijing’s coercive behavior threatens our collective security and prosperity and is actively working to undermine the rules of the international system and the values ​​that we and our allies share,” said Blinken after two days of consultation with NATO Allies. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is an alliance of 30 member states.

The secretary said there was still room to work with China on common challenges such as climate change and health security, but urged NATO to stand together if Beijing forces any of the alliance’s members.

“We know our allies have complex relationships with China that are not always a perfect match for ours. But we need to address these challenges together. That means working with our allies to fill the gaps in areas such as technology and infrastructure who are located in Beijing to use force pressure, “said Blinken.

“If either of us is forced, we should act as allies and work together to reduce our vulnerability by making sure our economies are more integrated,” said America’s top diplomat.

Blinken evoked China’s militarization of the South China Sea, predatory economy, intellectual property theft and human rights abuses.

On Monday, the Biden government again imposed sanctions on two Chinese officials, citing their role in serious human rights violations against ethnic minorities in Xinjiang.

The Treasury Department accused China of using repressive tactics, including mass detention and surveillance, against Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in the region for the past five years.

“Targets of this surveillance are often arrested and reportedly subjected to various methods of torture and ‘political re-education’,” the Treasury Department wrote in a statement.

Beijing previously denied US allegations that it committed genocide against the Uyghurs, a Muslim population native to the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in northwest China.

Blinken’s comments follow a controversial meeting between Blinken and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and China’s top diplomats Yang Jiechi and State Councilor Wang Yi in Alaska.

Before the Alaska talks, Blinken slammed China’s widespread use of “coercion and aggression” on the international stage, warning that the US would push back if necessary.

“China is using coercion and aggression to systematically undermine Hong Kong’s autonomy, undermine democracy in Taiwan, abuse human rights in Xinjiang and Tibet, and make maritime claims in the South China Sea that violate international law,” said Flashing at a press conference in Japan.

Tensions between Beijing and Washington increased under the Trump administration, which sparked a trade war and prevented Chinese tech companies from doing business in the US.

Over the past four years, the Trump administration blamed China for a variety of abuses, including intellectual property theft, unfair trade practices and, most recently, the coronavirus pandemic.

President Joe Biden, who spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping last month, previously said his approach to China would be different from that of his predecessor as he would work more closely with allies to achieve a backlash against Beijing.

“We will face China’s economic abuse,” said Biden in a speech at the State Department, describing Beijing as America’s “most serious competitor.”

“But we are also ready to work with Beijing if it is in the US interest,” said the president. “We will compete from a position of strength by improving at home and working with our allies and partners.”

Blinken, the first cabinet-level official in Biden to visit NATO, reiterated US commitment to the world’s most powerful alliance.

“We need to be able to have these tough conversations and even disagree while still treating each other with respect. In the past few years we seem to have forgotten too often who our friends are in the US. That has already changed, “said Blinken, without mentioning the” America First “policy advocated by the Trump administration.

Former President Donald Trump often disguised NATO members during his presidency and previously threatened to leave the alliance.

In December 2019, Trump told NATO leaders in London that too many members are still not making enough financial contributions and are threatening to reduce US military support if allies do not increase spending.

Trump pointed out to Chancellor Angela Merkel that she had not achieved the target of 2% of GDP set at the 2014 NATO summit in Wales.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel (R) watches US President Donald Trump (R) walk past her during a family photo as part of the NATO summit at the Grove Hotel in Watford, northeast of London, on December 4, 2019.

CHRISTIAN HARTMANN

At the time, Germany was only one of 19 NATO members who had not achieved the target of 2% of GDP set at the 2014 summit.

Blinken recognized the difficult transatlantic relationship with defense finances and called for a “more holistic view of burden sharing”.

“We recognize the significant strides made by many of our NATO allies in improving defense investments,” he said, adding that “no single figure fully captures a country’s contribution to defending our collective security and interests, especially in Europe a world where an increasing number of threats cannot be confronted with military force. “

“We have to recognize that because allies have different skills and comparative strengths, they will bear their share of the burden in different ways,” said Blinken.

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Blinken Proposes a Overseas Coverage Not ‘Disconnected From Our Each day Lives’

Blinken Proposes a Foreign Policy Not ‘Disconnected From Our Daily Lives’

WASHINGTON – Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken used his first major address on Wednesday to rally a constituency for President Biden’s foreign policy at a time when Americans are focused on the coronavirus pandemic, the economy and other domestic issues .

The 28-minute speech, delivered in a largely empty State Department reception room, was intended to demonstrate that the most pressing issues of diplomacy were matters that directly affect Americans.

From defending democracy to fighting climate change to managing the nation’s relations with China – “the greatest geopolitical test of the 21st century,” he said – Blinken outlined eight foreign policy priorities for the Biden government. He said they have to be faced both domestically and abroad, “or we’ll be left behind.”

Mr Blinken’s remarks were a companion to the White House’s release of what is known as the Interim National Security Strategic Guidance, a 24-page document intended to serve as the first foreign policy blueprint until administrative officials come up with their first official national security strategy, a Congressional strategy, which is required Report to be released by each White House later this year.

Briefing reporters of the document, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said the guidelines are based on the idea that the United States must be able to compete for “great powers” at the same time as rival powers such as China and Russia are being defended against cross-border threats such as pandemics, climate change and terrorism.

The key to this, Sullivan said, was rebuilding the American economy, democracy and alliances to operate “from a position of strength” worldwide.

Neither Mr Blinken nor Mr Sullivan made any new political announcements. And while the guidance document was intended for government officials, Mr Blinken attempted to connect with average Americans in a speech he would have given to an audience well beyond the Beltway without pandemic restrictions.

“I know that foreign policy sometimes feels disconnected from our daily lives,” said Blinken. “It’s either just about major threats like pandemics, terrorism, or it disappears from view.”

“Those of us who engage in foreign policy have not always done a good job of relating it to the needs and aspirations of the American people,” Blinken said. As a result, he said, “Americans have asked tough but fair questions about what we do, how we lead – in fact, whether we should lead at all.”

(His immediate predecessor, Mike Pompeo, frequently lectured in the U.S. to students, factory workers, and religious groups – though critics noted that he also selected venues and audiences that may be related to his suspected future political aspirations.)

Although Mr Blinken said several countries – including Russia, Iran and North Korea – presented serious challenges, he made it clear that China was America’s main competitor.

Repeating Mr. Biden’s campaign promise to alternate between competitive, collaborative and potentially confrontational positions on China on various issues, he said strong alliances are the best way to balance Beijing. “Where we withdrew, China filled in,” said Blinken.

But he offered few details, a vagueness that warned some former State Department officials that adapting to Beijing’s global influence would require expensive diplomatic and development efforts.

“We cannot confront China cheaply,” said Brett Bruen, former professional diplomat and White House official in the Obama administration.

Mr Pompeo had routinely singled out China during the Trump administration, calling it a rampant human rights abuser whose communist leaders had invaded foreign territories and were unable to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

Mr. Blinken repeatedly drew contrasts with the previous administration and President Donald J. Trump’s bombastic “America First” approach. “Real strength isn’t noise or bullying,” he said.

On immigration, Mr. Blinken said the government would continue to secure US borders but also pursue a “just decent solution” to the plight of the thousands of desperate Central Americans trying to enter the United States.

He also noted the deep rifts that have occurred in American politics and helped spark the January 6th uprising at the Capitol. “There is no question that our democracy is fragile,” he said.

However, Mr Blinken also acknowledged that previous administrations – including the Obama presidency in which he served – had failed ordinary Americans at times.

On Free Trade, “We haven’t done enough to understand who would be negatively affected and what it would take to adequately offset their pain or enforce agreements already on the books and help more workers and small businesses to fully benefit of them, ”he said.

Some liberal critics see Mr Blinken as too supportive of previous military interventions, admitting that “we need to remember what we have learned about the limits of violence in order to build lasting peace” – particularly in Afghanistan and the near by East.

“The day after a major military intervention is always more difficult than we imagined,” he said.

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Biden administration turns focus to Iran as Blinken meets with allies

Biden administration turns focus to Iran as Blinken meets with allies

Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks to State Department officials during U.S. President Joe Biden’s first visit to Washington, DC on February 4, 2021.

Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty Images

Secretary of State Antony Blinken will hold a virtual meeting with America’s key European allies on Friday evening to discuss strategy toward Iran, Western diplomats and senior US officials told NBC News.

Blinken will discuss Iran with the foreign ministers of Germany, France and Great Britain. The diplomats will also discuss the Covid-19 pandemic, climate change and the situation in Myanmar. The last time the Secretary of State held a call in this format was in 2018, when the US pulled out of the Iranian nuclear deal, according to NBC.

The meeting will take place after President Joe Biden’s National Security Council meets on Friday afternoon to discuss the government’s stance on Iran. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the NSC meeting was part of an ongoing policy review and no announcements would be made.

The developments are the strongest indication so far of Biden’s intention to turn the page of former President Donald Trump’s independent approach to Iran and diplomacy in general, and to return the US to a multilateral foreign policy.

An Iranian flag is pictured near a missile during a military exercise involving the Iranian Air Defense Forces Iran on October 19, 2020.

WANA News Agency | Reuters

The White House plans to rejoin the Iranian nuclear deal, but insists that Iran return to full compliance first. The Biden administration has promised to consult closely with US allies on their stance on Iran.

Trump withdrew the US from the deal because it did not restrict Iran’s ballistic missile program or address Tehran’s support for militant groups.

Iran withdrew its obligations under the deal when the Trump administration pursued a “maximum pressure” policy by imposing crippling economic sanctions on the Islamic Republic.

Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif suggested on Monday that Washington and Tehran should return to the deal at the same time, with diplomatic support from the European Union.

However, the Biden administration rejected this proposal.

“As President Biden said, the proposal is on the table that we will be ready when Iran fully complies with the JCPOA again,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Ned Price said Tuesday.

The US has not yet had talks with Iran over the nuclear deal, Price said.

The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action is the official name of the agreement negotiated under former President Barack Obama to try to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. China, France, Germany, Russia and the UK were also parties.

Last week, Biden named Robert Malley as US envoy to Iran. Malley helped draft the original 2015 Iranian nuclear deal. The move is seen as a diplomatic effort to move forward in the Middle East.

In his first foreign policy address on Thursday, Biden vowed to repair alliances through diplomacy and restore Washington’s leadership position on the global stage.

While not addressing the Iranian nuclear deal, he announced that the US would no longer support Saudi Arabia’s offensive operations in Yemen. The Saudis are fighting there against an armed movement known as the Houthis. Washington and Riyadh accuse Iran of supporting the Houthis.

Biden said the US would continue to help Saudi Arabia defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity, a statement that aims to reassure Riyadh and warn Iran. The Saudis accused Iran of planning an attack on its oil factories in 2019, which forced Riyadh to cut its oil production in half for a short time.

Amanda Macias of CNBC contributed to this article.

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Politics

Blinken requires Russian launch of Alexei Navalny

Blinken calls for Russian release of Alexei Navalny

Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny attends a rally marking the 5th anniversary of the murder of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov and protests against proposed changes to the country’s constitution on February 29, 2020 in Moscow, Russia.

Shamil Zhumatov | Reuters

WASHINGTON – Foreign Minister Anthony Blinken has condemned the Russian authorities’ “persistent use of tough tactics” against peaceful protesters who took to the streets across Russia on Sunday to demand the release of opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

For the second year in a row, tens of thousands gathered across the country to draw attention to Navalny, a loud critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was arrested by authorities earlier this month.

According to a surveillance group, more than 4,500 people were arrested by the Russian authorities for participating in the protests.

“We again call on Russia to release those detained for the exercise of their human rights, including Aleksey Navalny,” Blinken wrote in a tweet.

Last year, Navalny was medically evacuated to Germany from a Russian hospital after falling ill after reports that something had been added to his tea. Russian doctors treating Navalny denied that the Kremlin critic had been poisoned, blaming his comatose condition for low blood sugar levels.

In September, the German government announced that the 44-year-old Russian dissident had been poisoned by a chemical agent on nerves and described the toxicological report as “clear evidence”. The nerve agent was in the Novichok family, which was developed by the Soviet Union.

The Kremlin has repeatedly denied having played a role in Navalny’s poisoning.

Earlier this month, Navalny flew from Berlin to Russia, where he had recovered for almost half a year since being poisoned last summer. He was arrested at passport control.

The Russian authorities had issued an arrest warrant for Navalny, alleging that he had violated the three and a half year suspended sentence he received in 2014 for embezzlement.

“Mr. Navalny should be released immediately, and the perpetrators of the outrageous attack on his life must be held accountable,” wrote Jake Sullivan, Biden’s national security adviser, on Twitter shortly after his arrest.

Last week Blinken expressed “deep concern” about the treatment of Navalny and the general human rights situation in Russia.

“It remains to be seen how concerned and perhaps even frightened the Russian government seems to be of a man, Mr. Navalny,” Blinken told reporters during a press conference on Wednesday.

Newly confirmed Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks to reporters during his first press conference at the State Department in Washington on January 27, 2021.

Carlos Barria | Reuters

“As the President said, we are examining all these measures, which are of great concern to us, whether they are the treatment of Mr Navalny and, in particular, the obvious use of a chemical weapon in an attempt to assassinate him. ” “Added the nation’s top diplomat.

Blinken also said Wednesday that the Biden administration is investigating the hack on SolarWinds, reports of Russia’s bounties to American forces in Afghanistan, and possible election disruptions.

Biden previously vowed to “work with our allies and partners to hold the Putin regime accountable for its crimes”. He had previously accused the Trump administration of not representing Moscow strictly enough.