US, NATO deliver counteroffers to Russia on defusing Ukraine war prospects
By Sebastian Sprenger
WASHINGTON – U.S. and NATO officials have separately delivered new sets of proposals to the Russian government for sorting out security concerns in Europe, while rejecting Russia’s demand that the alliance forever close its door to Ukraine.
The diplomatic overture is the latest in a dramatic standoff that has summoned the kind of war clouds over the continent not seen for decades. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, speaking from Washington and Brussels, respectively, described their written responses to Moscow as a test of whether President Vladimir Putin is seriously interested in a diplomatic solution.
Russia has encircled Ukraine with more than 100,000 troops along the border, and new, combat-ready forces continue to stream into Russian ally Belarus, which also borders Ukraine and NATO member Poland, said Stoltenberg.
https://www.defensenews.com/global/europe/2022/01/26/us-nato-deliver-counteroffers-to-russia-on-defusing-ukraine-war-prospects/
