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Berlin Calls For Diplomacy Over Ukraine, Warns Russia Against Attacking

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During a visit to Kyiv, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has said diplomacy is “the only way” to resolve a tense standoff between Moscow and the West over Ukraine, while also warning that Russia will pay a “high price” if it launches an attack on its neighbor.

“We will do our all to guarantee Ukraine’s security. We will do our all to guarantee Europe’s security,” Baerbock told a joint press conference with her Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro Kuleba.

“Each further aggressive act will have a high price for Russia, economically, strategically, politically,” the German minister said a day before she is due to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow.

In 2014, Russia seized Crimea and began supporting separatist fighters in eastern Ukraine in an ongoing war that has claimed more than 13,200 lives.

Kyiv and its Western backers say Russia has deployed tens of thousands of troops along the border with Ukraine in recent weeks in what could be preparations for a potential invasion, something Moscow has denied.

Talks between Moscow and Western countries on Russia’s military buildup ended with no breakthrough last week.

A cyberattack that that disabled Ukraine’s government websites has further inflamed tensions, with Kyiv accusing Russia of being behind it. The Kremlin has denied any involvement.

Addressing the press briefing on January 17, Kuleba said Ukraine and Germany were united in pushing to revive four-way talks on putting an end to the fighting in eastern Ukraine in the so-called “Normandy” format, which includes Germany, France, Ukraine, and Russia.

Ukrainian officials have repeatedly sought reassurances from the West that no decisions will be made about the future of their country without Kyiv’s involvement and assent.

“It is important for us now that neither Berlin nor Paris makes any decisions about Ukraine without Ukraine, and does not play any game behind our backs in relations with Russia,” said Kuleba, who thanked Baerbock “for taking such a principled position.”

Kyiv fiercely opposes the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project aimed at shipping Russian natural gas to Germany, bypassing Ukrainian territory.

Baerbock noted that the project was now on hold and should fully comply with European energy regulations.

In a statement, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said the project’s certification should not be “artificially delayed and politicized” by German regulators and the European Commission.

Earlier in the day, Kuleba said a bipartisan delegation from the U.S. Congress had arrived in Kyiv, and that the visit “strengthens the Ukraine-U.S. strategic partnership and helps deter further Russian aggression.”

The delegation included Rob Portman (Republican-Ohio), Chris Murphy (Democrat-Connecticut), Jeanne Shahin (Democrat-New Hampshire), Amy Klobuchar (Democrat-Minnesota), Richard Blumenthal (Democrat-Connecticut), and Roger Wicker (Republican-Mississippi), the minister tweeted.

With reporting by AFP, Reuters, TASS, and RFE/RL’s Ukrainian Service