Blinken in Ukraine: preparing for war with Moscow
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken assured Ukraine of the US's "unwavering support" during his visit to the country and promised an additional 200 million dollars in military aid. He also threatened Moscow with massive consequences in the event of an attack, which the US apparently considers increasingly likely. Commentators mainly see the ball in Kyiv's court now.
A call for unity
Commenting on Hromadske Radio, Maksym Chylko of the foreign policy think tank Ukrainian Prism welcomes the visit of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Kyiv:
“This is a signal to Western partners that the US is taking the possibility of a Russian attack seriously. ... It's a call to the Ukrainian leadership to end the domestic confrontations. Washington is not very happy about the goings-on in Ukraine at a time when the foreign policy situation is getting ever tenser. All political camps should now unite in the face of the external threat and stop quarreling with each other.”
Kyiv must also comply with Minsk agreements
The US secretary of state wanted to remind his dialogue partners of two important details, says strana.best:
“Firstly, that the Minsk agreements does not need to be renegotiated, and constitutes the only possibility to resolve the situation in the Donbass. Secondly, negotiations are currently underway regarding one part of the agreements that Ukraine has not yet implemented. This is of course, the political part: elections in Donetsk and Luhansk before handing over control of the border, amnesty, special status for the region and its enshrinement in the constitution. As a reminder, the Ukrainian rulers have so far stated that they insist on certain changes. ... Blinken has thus advised Kyiv to change its position on these issues.”