LAVROV SAYS ‘LONDON IS NOT HEARING MOSCOW’; ‘WE MUST DRAW LINES IN THE SNOW’: UK PM

[Russian Foreign Ministry/Twitter]

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Thu 10 February 2022:

The foreign minister of the United Kingdom was greeted with a cold reception in Moscow on Thursday, as London’s efforts to intervene in the Ukraine issue hit a snag.

During Liz Truss’ visit to Moscow, she had a tense exchange of ideas with her Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, who told reporters during a heated news conference that she had refused to listen to the Kremlin’s concerns during previous talks.

Lavrov says ‘London is not hearing Moscow’

Al Jazeera’s Dorsa Jabbari, reporting from Moscow, says it was quickly clear how “icy” the exchange between Truss and Lavrov was when the pair emerged from their talks to address a news conference.

“The Russian foreign minister says that London is not hearing Moscow,” she said. “Clearly the two ministers did not see eye-to-eye … there is a huge gap between the two sides, which has only been highlighted by this meeting today.”

Russia has not ruled out evacuating diplomats from Ukraine: Report

The TASS news agency quotes Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko as saying Moscow has not ruled out evacuating its diplomats from Ukraine to protect them from provocations by Kyiv and third countries.

The United States, UK and Canada have all recently taken moves to withdraw the relatives of their embassy personnel in Ukraine from the country.

‘Warning time’ for possible Russian attack decreasing, NATO chief cautions

The number of Russian troops on the border with Ukraine is going up and the warning time for a possible attack is shrinking, NATO’s secretary-general has warned.

“This is a dangerous moment for European security,” Jens Stoltenberg told a news conference after a meeting in Brussels with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

“The number of Russian forces is going up. The warning time for a possible attack is going down,” he said. “NATO is not a threat to Russia, but we must be prepared for the worst while remaining strongly committed to finding a political solution.”

Ukraine slams Russian Black Sea naval drills

Ukraine’s foreign ministry has sharply criticised Russian naval exercises near its southern coast, saying the drills have made navigation in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov “virtually impossible”.

The ministry said in a statement that Moscow’s actions “show blatant disregard for the rules and principles of international law” and that Kyiv would work together with partner countries to prepare a response.

“Such aggressive actions by the Russian Federation as part of its hybrid war against Ukraine are unacceptable,” the statement said.

‘We must draw lines in the snow’: UK PM

Johnson has called for Europe to hold firm over Ukraine’s right to join NATO amid demands from Moscow that its neighbour never be permitted to become a member of the alliance.

“As an alliance, we must draw lines in the snow and be clear there are principles upon which we will not compromise,” the British prime minister said. “That includes the security of every NATO ally and the right of every European democracy to aspire to NATO membership.”

Ukraine invasion would be disastrous, UK warns Russia

Truss has again warned Moscow that an invasion of Ukraine would be disastrous for Russia, Ukraine, and Europe, and would carry severe costs.

“Fundamentally, a war in Ukraine would be disastrous for the Russian and Ukrainian people and for European security and together NATO has made it clear that any incursion into Ukraine would have massive consequences and carry severe costs,” the British foreign minister told Lavrov during her visit to the Russian capital.

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