প্রকাশ: 26/01/2022
US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday he would consider
personal sanctions on President Vladimir Putin if Russia invades Ukraine, as
Western leaders stepped up military preparations and made plans to shield
Europe from a potential energy supply shock.
The rare sanctions threat came as NATO places forces on
standby and reinforces eastern Europe with more ships and fighter jets in
response to Russia's troop build-up near its border with Ukraine.
Russia denies planning an attack and says the crisis is being
driven by NATO and US actions. It is demanding security guarantees from the
West, including a promise by NATO never to admit Ukraine. Moscow sees the
former Soviet republic as a buffer between Russia and NATO countries.
Following multiple rounds of US-Russia talks over Ukraine
that failed to reach a breakthrough, Biden, who has long warned Moscow of
economic consequences, upped the ante on Tuesday by saying Putin could
personally face sanctions.
If Russia were to move into Ukraine with the estimated 100,000
soldiers it has massed near the border, Biden said it would be the
"largest invasion since World War Two" and would "change the
world."
Speaking to reporters, Biden was asked if he would see
himself imposing sanctions on Putin directly if Russia invaded Ukraine.
"Yes," he responded. "I would see that."
Direct US sanctions on foreign leaders are rare but not
unprecedented. Others who have faced sanctions include Venezuela's Nicolas
Maduro, Syria's Bashar al-Assad and Libya's Muammer Gaddafi.
On Tuesday, a US plane carrying military equipment and
munitions landed in Kyiv, the third installment of a $200 million package to
shore up Ukraine's defenses.
The Pentagon has put on alert about 8,500 US troops in
Europe and the United States to be ready to deploy to NATO's eastern flank if
needed.
Russia said it was watching with great concern and accused
Washington of fuelling tensions over Ukraine, repeating its line that the
crisis was being driven by US and NATO actions rather than by its own build-up
of forces near the Ukrainian border.
Biden said on Tuesday he may deploy US troops in the nearer
term but ruled out sending unilateral US forces to Ukraine, which is not a NATO
member.
"There is not going to be any American forces moving
into Ukraine," he said.
So far, NATO has about 4,000 troops in multinational
battalions in Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia and Poland, backed by tanks, air
defenses and intelligence and surveillance units.
As Western leaders appeal for unity, differences have
emerged among European nations over how best to respond. Putin is due to meet
Wednesday with the heads of some of the biggest companies in Italy, Russia's
fifth biggest trading partner, despite the rising tensions.
"It is absolutely vital that... the West is united now,
because it is our unity now that will be much more effective in deterring any
Russian aggression," British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said, adding
Britain was discussing with the United States the possibility of banning Russia
from the SWIFT global payments system.
French President Emmanuel Macron said he would seek
clarification over Russia's intentions in a phone call with Putin set for
Friday. Political advisers from Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France are due to
meet in Paris on Wednesday.
GAS DIVERSION PLANS
With fears of a new Russian military assault high after its
invasion of Crimea in 2014, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged his
compatriots on Tuesday to stay calm and said work was underway to bring about a
meeting between him and the leaders of Russia, Germany and France.
"There are no rose-colored glasses, no childish
illusions, everything is not simple. ... But there is hope," Zelenskiy
said in a televised address. "Protect your body from viruses, your brain
from lies, your heart from panic."
In Washington, senior Biden administration officials said
the United States was in talks with major energy-producing countries and
companies around the world over a potential diversion of supplies to Europe if
Russia invades Ukraine.
The EU depends on Russia for around a third of its gas
supplies. Any interruptions to its Russian imports would exacerbate an existing
energy crisis caused by shortages.
"We've... been working to identify additional volumes
of non-Russian natural gas from North Africa and the Middle East, Asia, and the
United States," White House spokesperson Jen Psaki told reporters.
"We're in discussion with major natural gas producers
around the globe to understand their capacity and willingness to temporarily
surge natural gas output and to allocate these volumes to European
buyers," she said.
Psaki and other officials did not name specific countries or
companies but said they included a broad range of suppliers, including sellers
of liquefied natural gas (LNG).
An escalated conflict would likely further increase energy
costs for many countries, keeping headline inflation rates elevated for longer,
said Gita Gopinath, first deputy managing director of the International
Monetary Fund.
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