Inside the Conflict between Russia and Ukraine
Relations between Russia and Ukraine continue to sour amid international efforts to quell the rising tension in the region.
In 2014, Russia annexed Crimea, a Ukrainian peninsula, after their Kremlin-friendly president lost his seat. After continued clashes in the eastern region between Russian insurgents and Ukrainian forces left over 14,000 dead, officials have reached a stalemate.
— Ukraine / Україна (@Ukraine) December 7, 2021
In 2015, a peace deal was signed in Minsk that gave Russian rebel-held Crimean territory autonomy, and amnesty to the rebels themselves. Currently, President Vladimir Putin wants assurance that Ukraine will be prohibited from joining NATO. Russia has over 100,000 troops in the area bordering Ukraine and Crimea. The US believes that the Russians are missing only 30 percent of forces they would need to stage an attack and invade Kyiv, the Ukrainian capital.
Welcome to Ukraine @EmmanuelMacron! This is the first visit of the President of France to our country in 24 years. I’m convinced it will be fruitful for our states, as 🇺🇦 and 🇫🇷 are interested in deepening cooperation in the security sphere and strengthening economic cooperation. pic.twitter.com/aV35oT0m24
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 8, 2022
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with French President Emmanuel Macron following Macron’s call with Putin in an attempt to deescalate the tension in the region. In the call, Macron said that Putin assured him that Russia would not continue the pressure on Ukraine. Zelensky replied that while he welcomed concrete steps, he would not trust him on words alone. The French President also pledged $1.3 billion in aid to assist Ukraine and help restore the war-torn infrastructure in the east.
I welcomed Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany today for his first visit to the White House. We discussed our diplomatic and deterrence response to Russia’s military build-up on Ukraine’s borders, and our shared commitment to working closely together to address common challenges. pic.twitter.com/Uu1ex9J1B6
— President Biden (@POTUS) February 8, 2022
President Joe Biden threatened to stop the Nord 2 pipeline from further development if Russia invades Ukraine. This was not promised by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, although he confirmed he would affirm the choices made by the US and other NATO allies.
