Sullivan: US will retaliate strongly if Russia deploys troops in Latin America
Jake Sullivan. Photo: Jonathan Ernst / Reuters
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan promised that Washington would respond harshly to Moscow if Russia deployed troops in Latin America. This was at a briefing at the White House after three meetings between Western countries and Russia in Europe, writes RIA Novosti.
If Russia moves in this direction, we will deal with this decisively.
Jake SullivanNational Security Adviser to the President of the United States
Sullivan also spoke about leverage against Russia in the event of an escalation in Ukraine. He stated that sanctions against Moscow are part of the available toolkit. According to him, Washington has other leverage. “These instruments relate to the interests and opportunities in the security sphere of the Russian Federation,” he said.
Sullivan added that the goal of Washington and the allies is not to “get involved in an escalation spiral, but to find a way out” that would be consistent with their principles and interests.
Threats of sanctions
The United States Congress presented a bill on new sanctions against Russia in the event of an escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. Congressmen thought about a ban on operations with Russia's primary and secondary public debt.
Also, the United States wanted to impose sanctions against the Russian banking sector and the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. In addition, if the situation escalates, the US authorities may demand that Russia be disconnected from the SWIFT international payments system.
The initiator to introduce a new package of sanctions was the chairman of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, Robert Menendez. He believes that the new measures should be a signal to the Russian side, which will show that it is not worth “destroying your economy and sacrificing the lives of your people in futile attempts to change the map of Europe.”
US First Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, in turn, said that Western countries would impose collective sanctions against Russia if it invades Ukraine. She specified that the restrictions prepared by Western states include measures against key financial institutions and export restrictions that will hit major industries.
We are ready, in coordination with our partners and allies, to exact this harsh price. The price will include financial sanctions. It was reported that these sanctions will affect key financial institutions, include export controls that target key industries
Wendy Sherman US Deputy Secretary of State
NATO ultimatum
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that the leadership of the alliance will consider the need to further increase its military presence in Eastern Europe in the event of Russian aggression against Ukraine.
According to the politician, if Russia continues to pull troops to the border with Ukraine or use force against Kiev, then NATO will seriously consider the need to increase its military presence in the eastern part of the alliance.
Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia Alexander Grushko noted that during the negotiations of the Russia-NATO Council, Moscow honestly pointed out to the North Atlantic Alliance the serious risks that a further deterioration in relations could lead to.
To date, we do not have a unifying positive agenda. Not at all
Alexander GrushkoDeputy Foreign Minister of Russia
Grushko stressed that cooperation between Russia and NATO in areas of common interest has been completely suspended. The politician added that the lack of cooperation with the Russian side fits into NATO's course to contain Moscow. He also noted that security and peace in Europe are threatened by the expansion of the alliance's forces to the East.
Security Guarantees
In December, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs published draft agreements between the Russian Federation, NATO and the United States on security guarantees. The document says that the United States should not create military bases in the territories of the former Soviet Union countries that are not members of NATO. The United States also discouraged the use of their infrastructure for any military activity and the development of bilateral military cooperation with them.
On January 10, negotiations were held in Geneva on guarantees of security and strategic stability between the delegations of Russia and the United States. According to a State Department spokesman, in total, the discussion between the officials of the two countries lasted about 7.5 hours.
Deputy Foreign Minister of Russia Sergei Ryabkov, following the talks, said that the countries failed to agree on the non-expansion of NATO to the East. According to him, the issue of obtaining legal guarantees regarding the non-expansion of NATO aroused “serious objections” from the United States.
Ryabkov also noted that during the negotiations, the Russian side assured partners from the United States that the Kremlin had no plans to attack Ukraine. He stressed that the maneuvers of the Russian troops are carried out within the territorial borders of the country.
