WASHINGTON, February 16. /TASS/. The United States is ready to engage in diplomatic contacts with Moscow, but will respond resolutely to a purported Russian aggression against Ukraine, US President Joe Biden said in the White House.
"The United States is prepared no matter what happens. We are ready <…> to be engaged in diplomacy with Russia <…> to improve stability and security in Europe as a whole," he said. "And we are ready to respond decisively to a Russian attack on Ukraine, which is still very much a possibility."
"Through all of the events of the last few weeks and months, this has been our approach. And it remains our approach now," the US leader added.
Concerns over Moscow’s alleged preparations for an invasion into Ukraine have become more and more frequent in the West and in Kiev recently. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov castigated these statements as an empty and groundless escalation of tension, emphasizing that Russia posed no threat to anyone. At the same time, the Kremlin press secretary did not rule out possible provocations to justify such claims and warned that the attempts to resolve the Ukrainian conflict by force would carry extremely serious consequences.