Ukraine: Frantic last-minute effort to halt offensive as Russian tanks are reported rolling towards Ukraine border – Times of India

Washington: US President Joe Biden meeting with its National Security Council on Sunday as Russian tanks are reported to rumble Ukraine What Washington says is an earlier decision by Moscow to invade the neighboring country.
There was a ray of hope that prompt action Russia could have been avoided after the French President Emmanuel Macron Including your Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin With a pledge to convene “a meeting at the highest level to define a new order of peace and security in Europe”. The White House has not responded to the French proposal.
According to a Twitter post by military analysts accompanying the video, the armored tank depicted with the letter ‘Z’ is reported to have rolled from Shebekino in Russia to Kharkiv Oblast in Ukraine. The marking is said to be intended to differentiate Russian tanks assigned with specific roles and to prevent friendly fire.
Further troop movements are taking place even as Macron approaches his Russian counterpart in what NATO allies say is an imminent offensive. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky also urged Putin “I don’t know what the President of the Russian Federation wants,” but Ukraine will continue to “follow only the diplomatic route,” to meet with him for talks amid the escalating crisis.
On its part, Moscow says the US and NATO allies have not responded to Russia’s specific proposals to advance talks. While there was a glimmer of hope that the situation would worsen after 105 minutes of phone talks between Macron and Putin, where they reportedly “favour a diplomatic solution to the current crisis and need to do everything to achieve a “Agreed. “There was a sign of impatience on the part of Moscow which it sees as delays and obfuscation on the part of the US and NATO allies.
The Kremlin said in a statement, “The Russian President once again emphasized Russia’s demands by the US and NATO to take Russia’s demands seriously and respond specifically and to the point.”
US Secretary of State Antony blinken is scheduled to meet his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov But President Biden said on Wednesday that talks would stop if the attack happened earlier.
Blinken said on a Sunday TV talk show that Biden is ready to engage with Putin “any time, in any format, if he can help stop the war,” but didn’t seem too optimistic. .
“We believe President Putin has made the decision” [to invade Ukraine], But until the tanks are actually rolling and planes are flying, we will use every opportunity and every minute we have to see if diplomacy can still stop President Putin from pursuing it,” he told CNN. State of the Union”.
Russia continues to deny that it plans to invade Ukraine, and does not do so every day and every hour in a way that undermines American credibility, already in the wake of failed intelligence gathering during the Gulf War. is on the rack. US officials have suggested that Washington is willing to live with it if it prevents Russia from going through an invasion to prove America wrong.
Russia’s deputy ambassador to the United Nations, Dmitry Polyansky, told Sky News on Sunday that the US and Britain’s assessment of an impending Russian offensive could not be relied upon because “they made us, the whole world, on several occasions have to recall weapons.” Disappointed enough for the mass destruction in Iraq.”
In the US, right-wing commentators trolled the Biden administration and “credible” mainstream media, saying they had previously claimed that Russia would invade Ukraine on the 16th, and that when there was no invasion, the goalposts were moved to 20th. moved on. “20th today, no more attacking. Waiting to hear what the next goalpost will be,” scoffed at one tweet.

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