Blinken and Russia's Lavrov meet amid tensions over Ukraine

Blinken informed summit attendees that the US holds "deep concerns about Russia's plans for renewed aggression against Ukraine." This aggression would "move us in exactly the opposite direction" Blinken mentioned, stressing "it's simply not in anyone's interest."He added that "the best way to avert the crisis is through diplomacy," calling on Russia to abide by the Minsk peace agreements hammered out in 2015 between Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany.The interpretation of this and different core OSCE paperwork emerged as a sticking level between the 2 nations, with Lavrov saying it "is clear" that the US and Russia interpret them in "different ways." Blinken criticized Russia's adherence to the Helsinki Final Act, a multilateral settlement relationship again to 1975, saying that the nation "continues to violate the Helsinki principles and repeatedly obstructs the work of this organization."Despite the accusations the 2 officers acknowledged the significance of dialogue, with Lavrov acknowledging "the importance of our two states for global stability and for security, including in the Euro-Atlantic area."Blinken additionally held a bilateral assembly Thursday with the Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dymtro Kuleba, at which the highest US diplomat reiterated Washington's "unwavering commitment to Ukraine's territorial integrity, sovereignty and its independence."The OSCE summit comes on the heels of a gathering of NATO international ministers in Latvia that was dominated by issues over latest occasions in Belarus and Russia's intentions in Ukraine.The US and NATO say Russia is rising the variety of fight troops close to its border with Ukraine.The Kremlin has repeatedly denied that Russia plans to invade Ukraine and sees NATO assist for the nation as a menace on Russia's western border.Russian President Vladimir Putin referred to as Wednesday for particular agreements that may rule out any additional NATO enlargement eastwards and deployment of its weaponry near Russia's borders.On Tuesday, Putin mentioned NATO army enlargement near Russian borders and deploying missile methods in Ukraine could be crossing a "red line" for Russia. In response to the actions of the West that Russia perceives as a menace, the nation is growing its personal hypersonic missile weapons.