Ukraine: Joe Biden urges Putin to 'step back from brink of war' as he sends message of peace to Russians
In a message of peace to the Russian people, the US president says: "I do not believe you want a bloody destructive war against Ukraine, a country and a people with whom you share such deep ties."
Wednesday 16 February 2022 07:23, UK
The US president has called on Vladimir Putin to step back from the brink of war and sent a message of peace to the Russian people.
Joe Biden said the US has "not yet verified" Russia's claim that some of its forces have withdrawn from the border, adding an invasion of Ukraine remains a distinct possibility.
Speaking from the White House, he warned again that if Russia invades its neighbour, the US "will rally the world to oppose its aggression".
NATO defence ministers to meet in Brussels - Ukraine crisis latest
Read more: Biden was direct, fluent and blunt, but there was a subtle change in tone towards Russia
His call came ahead of a meeting of NATO defence ministers in Brussels on Wednesday.
British Defence Secretary Ben Wallace will join NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin as the alliance considers its response to the 130,000 Russian troops massing at Ukraine's borders.
Their meeting comes after President Putin said on Tuesday that Russia did not want another war, and was open to further dialogue with the US and its NATO allies.
Key developments
- Moscow taunted what it called the "humiliated and destroyed" West as it hinted troops were pulling back
- Nato said it had seen no de-escalation on the ground
- The prime minister said intelligence was "not encouraging" and "mixed signals" were coming from Russia
- Vladimir Putin said "of course we don't want" war in Europe
- The Russian leader accused Ukraine of "genocide"
- Several Ukrainian banks and ministries were victims of cyber attacks
On Tuesday Mr Biden told the American people: "While I will not send American servicemen to fight in Ukraine, we have supplied Ukrainian military with equipment to help them defend themselves, and provided training and advice and intelligence for that purpose.
"And make no mistake, the United States will defend very inch of NATO territory with the full force of American power.
"An attack against one NATO country is an attack against all of us."
Mr Biden went on to insist the US and NATO are "not a threat to Russia", stressing that neither have missiles in Ukraine.
"We do not have plans to put them there as well," he said.
"We're not targeting the people of Russia. We do not seek to destabilise Russia."
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He then addressed the citizens of Russia, saying: "You are not our enemy, and I do not believe you want a bloody destructive war against Ukraine, a country and a people with whom you share such deep ties."
President Biden warned that should Russia invade Ukraine, it will be "without cause or reason" and the human cost will be "immense".
Mr Biden also acknowledged the likelihood that US and allied sanctions on Russia in retaliation for an invasion would have significant blowback on the American economy, including possible price rises and disruption to the nation's energy supply.
"The American people understand that defending democracy and liberty is never without cost," Mr Biden said.
"I will not pretend this will be painless."
Ukraine cyberattacks
Late on Monday afternoon Ukarine's ministry of defence website went down and two banks were uncontactable due to unsophisticated cyber attacks.
By late evening the security service, national police and foreign ministry sites were also down.
The Ukrainian Centre for Strategic Communications and Information Security, which is part of the culture ministry, said in a statement: "It is not ruled out that the aggressor used tactics of little dirty tricks because its aggressive plans are not working out on a large scale."
Ukraine has accused Russia of orchestrating similar interventions in the past.
The 'denial of service' type of attack is commonly used across the internet.
Putin open to more talks
Hours earlier, Vladimir Putin has insisted he "of course" does not want a war in Europe.
His comments followed conflicting claims he had withdrawn some his country's forces from Ukraine's borders.
Speaking at a news conference after talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Mr Putin stressed he was not keen on a military confrontation.
Read more:
Is Russia going to invade Ukraine? Will UK troops get involved? Your questions answered
He also suggested that there was the opportunity for further talks between Moscow and the West in a bid to ease current tensions.
Truss urges Russia to 'show up to diplomatic meetings'
Foreign Secretary Liz Truss urged Russia to "commit to meaningful talks" after it was revealed the Kremlin failed to send a representative to a meeting of the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
"Russia is patently failing to live up to the international commitments it has made around transparency," she said.
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"If the Kremlin is serious about a diplomatic resolution, then it needs to show up to diplomatic meetings and commit to meaningful talks.
"Russia's refusal to engage with the OSCE process demonstrates its contempt for the commitments it freely signed up to.
"It is Russia that is the aggressor here. The troops stationed on the border are clear threat to Ukraine.
"The UK and our allies urge the Kremlin to withdraw its troops and enter discussions based on the proposals put forward by NATO to improve transparency and reduce risk."