NEW YORK, January 29. /TASS/. Washington and Kiev are at odds over how to interpret reports about Russia’s alleged preparations to invade Ukraine, CNN said, citing sources.
According to the TV channel, US President Joe Biden and his advisors "have been annoyed by [Ukrainian President Vladimir] Zelensky's public downplaying of the threat." "The questions we have are, why are you picking fights with the US?" CNN quoted an official as saying. "Why are you leaking and distorting when the US is one of the only real friends you have? And why ask for more weapons if you say the threat hasn't changed?" the official added.
Meanwhile, according to the TV channel’s sources, the Kiev authorities believe that Washington "is inciting panic and economic turmoil inside Ukraine, while at the same time the US refuses to take preemptive deterrence measures such as imposing new sanctions on Russia." "Kiev would find more value in taking active deterrent measures such as immediate sanctions against Nord Stream than the persistent verbal warnings predicting imminent war for the last couple months that provide no deterrent, and are actually unintentionally negatively impacting the Ukrainian economy," CNN said, citing an adviser to Zelensky.
The TV channel reported earlier, citing a senior Ukrainian official that Thursday’s phone call between Biden and Zelensky "did not go well."
The West and Kiev have recently been echoing allegations about Russia’s potential invasion of Ukraine. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov castigated these claims as "empty and unfounded", serving as a ploy to escalate tensions, pointing out that Russia did not pose any threat whatsoever to anyone. However, Peskov did not rule out the possibility of provocations aimed at justifying such claims and warned that attempts to use military force to resolve the crisis in southeastern Ukraine would have serious consequences.