The Pentagon: A US military delegation visited Ukraine recently and studied ways to activate its missile defense capabilities
"We've seen no major changes to the force posture by the Russians" around Ukraine, per @PentagonPresSec, - "We have not seen any decreases. They continue to have a sizable force posture." he says
Russia has no confidence that the US and NATO will honor agreements on legally binding security guarantees even if adopted, Ryabkov said
Ryabkov: 'We know that legally binding guarantees are a complex technical matter that may require ratification and will take time. But that's a secondary matter. We do not even see political will to move on this issue'
Ryabkov: 'I would like to underscore that the question of non expansion of NATO in legally binding form is top priority for us. We didn't hear anything about our top priority. That's the problem we are facing now'
Ryabkov on Iranian JCPOA talks. 'The talks are ongoing. We think the chance of getting an agreement are increasing. All parties are demonstrating their willingness to find a solution'
The Russian Federation will continue the exercises on its territory, no matter how NATO objects, - Ryabkov said
Sherman on whether Russia's draft proposals were designed to be rejected or a serious opening bid: "The Russians would tell you they were an opening bid for serious negotiation - and we will see if that is indeed the case"
Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman says that Kazakhstan did not come up in her discussions with the Russian delegation today
Sherman denies Russian statements that US agreed on rejecting Ukraine's admission to NATO: "We will not agree that any country should have a veto over any other country when it comes to being part of the NATO alliance. NATO has its own processes for that"
"I don't think we know the answer to that," says @DeputySecState says when asked if there was an indication that Russia is prepared to de-escalate situation with Ukraine
Sherman says it's not clear if today's talks dissuaded Russia from a potential invasion of Ukraine. "We will see whether in fact Russia understands that the best way to pursue diplomacy" is to de-escalate, she says
Important for European NATO allies: US @DeputySecState Sherman says there was no discussion of US troop levels/positioning in today's #GenevaTalks
"One doesn't send 100,000 troops just to exercise," Deputy Sec State Sherman says, all on the border with Ukraine
.@DeputySecState Sherman says in today's #GenevaTalks, Russia reiterated it does "not intend to invade [Ukraine]; these are just exercises" on the border. She reminded her counterpart such exercises must be (and were not) notified in advance, inviting Moscow to pull troops back
Rybakov said Russia would decide next steps only after NRC & OSCE meetings, so a walk-out seems unlikely before then. He also said the US side approached Russia's concerns "very seriously"
Briefing journalists after the session, Sherman underscores that "it is on Russia to de-escalate tensions" and that Moscow must now make decisions on what happens next
"We've been clear, and we were clear today, that the U.S. would welcome genuine progress through diplomacy," Sherman says. "But if Russia walks away from the diplomatic path, it may well be quite apparent that they were never serious about pursuing diplomacy at all
"If Russia stays at the table and take concrete steps to de-escalate tensions, we believe we can achieve progress," Wendy Sherman now on Ukraine. Sherman traveling to Brussels tomorrow to meet NATO
Sherman says talks included discussion of eg missile placement but that many Russian demands are non-negotiable, such as shutting the door to NATO membership for aspiring allies
"We will not allow anyone to slam closed NATO's open-door policy," Sherman adds, "We will not forego bilateral cooperation with sovereign states that wish to work with the United States
U.S., per Sherman, also expressed an openness to discussing ways to "set reciprocal limits on the size and scope of military exercises, and to improve transparency about those exercises"
Ms Sherman: "We will not make decisions about Ukraine without Ukraine" Discussions between US & allies in days ahead
US @DeputySecState Wendy Sherman says talks with her Russian counterpart today were "frank and constructive", underpinned byagreement that a "nuclear war can never be won and can never be fought
US- Russia Strategic Dialogue lasted EIGHT hours in Geneva, US Missile Systems in E Europe were discussed: Dep. Sec Wendy Sherman says
Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman says the bilateral talks were "frank and forthright"and said the US offered to meet again "soon" to discuss missile placement and the future of "certain missile systems" along the lines of the now-defunct INF treaty
2 year agoAnother military echelon filmed in Amursky region
Russian peacekeepers deployed Orlan-10 drone crews at Almaty airport
"The U.S.-Russia Strategic Stability Dialogue concluded at 4:32pm local time in Geneva," says @StateDept
Talks between US and Russian officials in Geneva concluded at 4:32pm local time, according to a State Department spokesperson. They lasted roughly 7.5 hours, not accounting for a break for lunch
