Boris Johnson will travel to Ukraine for talks with the President of Ukraine – Volodymyr Zelensky
The Prime Minister of United Kingdom (U.K.) – Boris Johnson will travel to Ukraine for talks with the President of Ukraine – Volodymyr Zelensky, over possible Russian invasion.
He has promised to work with Zelensky and work out a diplomatic solution to de-escalate the rising tension between Ukraine and Russia.
Although Russia has a built-up of 120,00 troops across its borders with Ukraine, the President of Russia – Vladimir Putin has denied that he is planning to invade Ukraine. However, he has warned Ukraine to not to make any progress in joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) as it threatens Russian security. The NATO, United States (U.S.) and European Union (E.U.) have rejected Russian demand and said that it is to be decided between Ukraine and NATO.
The Foreign Secretary of U.K. – Liz Truss has already prepared a list of sanctions for Russia. It includes diplomats and businesses related with Putin. She was supposed to accompany Johnson to Ukraine, but she tested positive for Coronavirus (COVID-19) and hence had to drop the plan.
Taking it to twitter, Truss tweeted,
We are toughening and expanding our sanctions regime in response to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine.
— Liz Truss (@trussliz) January 31, 2022
There will be nowhere to hide. Nothing is off the table. pic.twitter.com/Wsxkx3DCeM
The U.K. has also announced a financial assistance of £ 88 million to Ukraine to promote stable governance and energy independence from Russia.
Speaking on the occasion, Johnson said, “It is the right of every Ukrainian to determine how they are governed. As a friend and a democratic partner, the UK will continue to uphold Ukraine’s sovereignty in the face of those who seek to destroy it.”
Separately, the U.S. and Russian diplomats clashed at the UNSC meeting. The meeting was called on by the U.S. to discuss the rising tension in Ukraine. The Ambassador of U.S. – Linda Thomas-Greenfield said the mobilisation was the biggest Europe had seen in decades. The U.S. still believes the tussle can be resolved through discussion. However, in the event of an invasion, the consequences of which would be horrific.
However, her Russian counterpart – Vasily Nebenzya accused the U.S. of fomenting hysteria and unacceptable interference in Russia’s affairs. He said there’s no proof that Russia was planning military action against Ukraine, adding that Russia often deployed troops on its own territory and this was none of Washington’s business. He accused American media of publishing a very large amount of unverified, distorted and deliberately deceitful information about what’s happening in Ukraine and around it.
