NEW YORK, September 4. /TASS/. The Kiev regime’s allies in the West are worried that Russia may mount a new successful offensive in the Ukrainian conflict zone while they are discussing potential security guarantees with the Ukrainian side, Bloomberg reported.
"European leaders are increasingly concerned that Russia will mount a new offensive on Ukraine as they sit down" with Zelensky to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine, the news agency said.
According to Bloomberg, "at their security council meeting in Toulon last week, German and French officials discussed the Russian troops massing outside Pokrovsk (Krasnoarmeysk - TASS), a Ukrainian-held stronghold in the eastern Donetsk region, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be named."
The agency noted that capturing Krasnoarmeysk would open the way to a Russian assault on the much larger cities of Kramatorsk and Slavyansk as Moscow seeks control over the entire Donetsk region.
Bloomberg pointed out that "growing concerns come as the gathering of the so-called coalition of the willing in the French capital will aim to finalize discussions on the European level about security guarantees for post-war Ukraine, people familiar with the plans said. The leaders will also speak to Donald Trump."
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told NBC News in an interview that security guarantees in the Ukrainian settlement should be resolved by consensus, taking into account Russia’s basic interests.
He also said that ensuring Ukraine’s security guarantees through foreign military intervention in any part of Ukraine would be unacceptable for Russia.