A senior administration official, briefing on background, arrogantly told reporters yesterday that the U.S. will never agree to some Russian security proposals, but in general, is ready to engage in talks with Moscow through multiple channels as soon as early January. He warned that “if Russia goes ahead with what may be underway, we and our allies are prepared to impose severe costs that would damage Russia’s economy and bring about exactly what it says it does not want: more NATO capabilities, not less; closer to Russia, not further away.
“We’ve conveyed all this directly to Russia, including from President Biden to President Putin. But we’ve also been clear that there is a different path available should Russia choose to take it,” he said. “The U.S. is ready to engage in diplomacy as soon as early January through multiple channels: bilaterally, through the Strategic Stability Dialogue we have with Russia, and, multilaterally, through the NATO-Russia Council and the OSCE.
“We’ve taken note of the concerns that Russia has raised both privately and in public, and want to reiterate that any dialogue must be based on reciprocity, meaning that we have our own concerns to put on the table, and any dialogue must also take place in full coordination with our partners and allies under the principle of ‘nothing about you without you,’” the official went on. “Our view is that negotiations should start from the baseline of foundational principles and documents on European security, which underscore territorial integrity, borders not being changed by force, and respect for the sovereignty and sovereign decision-making of countries.
