Putin says West has ‘ignored’ key concerns in Ukraine stand-off

US and Nato responses did not take into account Russia’s main concerns including preventing Nato’s expansion, Putin tells France’s Macron

Kremlin says the two leaders spoke at length, with Putin telling Macron he will ‘carefully’ study responses before deciding ‘on his further actions’

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A Ukrainian sniper poses for a photo before moving to the front line in eastern Ukraine on Friday. High-stakes diplomacy continued in a bid to avert a war in Eastern Europe, with 100,000 Russian troops massed near Ukraine’s border and the US and other nations worried that Russian President Vladimir Putin will mount some sort of invasion within weeks. Photo: AP

Bloomberg,ReutersandAgence France-Presse

Published: 6:49pm, 28 Jan 2022Updated: 11:05pm, 28 Jan 2022

Russian President Vladimir Putin told his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron on Friday that the West had ignored Moscow’s security concerns over Nato expansion and Ukraine, the Kremlin said.

The United States and Nato earlier this week delivered a response to sweeping security demands put to them by Russia, that called on the West to promise never to admit Ukraine to the US-led security alliance.

“The US and Nato responses did not take into account Russia’s fundamental concerns including preventing Nato’s expansion and refusing to deploy strike weapons systems near Russia’s borders,” Putin told Macron, the Kremlin said in a statement.

Pedestrians take photographs of a just-married couple crossing a road in Odessa, Ukraine. President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly said he currently has no plans to attack the country. Photo: Bloomberg

Putin said the US had “ignored” other key concerns outlined by Russia and had failed to explain how security in Europe could be guaranteed without hurting defence concerns of other countries.

The Kremlin said the two leaders had spoken at length, with Putin telling Macron he will “carefully” study the US and Nato’s responses “after which he will decide on his further actions”.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said earlier on Friday that the US proposal to defuse tensions with Ukraine contained “rational elements” even though some key points were ignored.

Olga, one of 16 residents still living in her frontline village, holds a rabbit in her yard not far from the front line in the Luhansk region, eastern Ukraine, on Friday. Photo: AP

His seemingly calmer tone came after US President Joe Biden warned of a possible Russian attack next month during a phone call on Thursday with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky. They also discussed ways the US could offer financial support to bolster Kyiv’s economy.

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