Ukraine could be subjected to provocative aggression triggered by Russia’s deterioration of the situation in the disputed eastern Donbass region, Defense Minister Taran said Saturday. Taran said Russia’s accusation that the rights of the Russian-speaking population in the east are being violated could serve as a “justification” for another aggression against Ukraine.
According to Reuters, Taran said in a statement that it should be noted that the threat of armed aggression by Russia against Ukraine is likely to intensify only after the corresponding political decisions are made at the highest level of the Kremlin.
Kiev warned about the build-up of Russian troops near the Russian-Ukrainian border and the escalation of violence between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatist forces along the contact line in the Donbas region.
And the deployment of Russian troops has raised concerns that Moscow is preparing to send troops into Ukraine. The Kremlin denies that Russian troops are a threat, but says it will stay there as long as it sees fit.
Kozak, a veteran Kremlin official and close associate of Putin, claimed last week that depending on the extent of the military conflict in eastern Ukraine, Russia may be forced to defend the Russian-speaking population there.
U.S. Secretary of State John Blinken on Friday called on Russia to halt its troop buildup with the French and German foreign ministers and reiterated his support for Kiev in Ukraine’s standoff with Russia.
Separately, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in a statement Friday that Russia may take measures to protect Russian civilians in eastern Ukraine amid fears of another outbreak of full-scale fighting there, according to the Associated Press.
The statement reflected the Kremlin’s determination to prevent Ukraine from trying to regain control of areas in eastern Ukraine controlled by separatist forces. The Ukrainian military denies Russian claims that Ukrainian forces are preparing to attack the separatist forces.
Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatist forces have been fighting in eastern Ukraine since Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean peninsula in 2014, and more than 14,000 people have died in the conflict. Efforts to negotiate a political settlement have been put on hold.
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