US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has expressed pessimism about the prospects for ending the war in Ukraine, saying he sees no signs that Russia is ready to end the conflict anytime soon.
“I hope Russia will stop the aggression as soon as possible,” Blinken said in a television interview in Niger. “So far, unfortunately, we don’t see any signs of that, positive signs.”
“We thought it would end, maybe tomorrow, so we tried to stop it…before the assault started,” Blinken continued. – But, unfortunately, for Putin, this is an imperial project. According to him, Ukraine does not exist. It should just be part of Russia.
“This poses a problem for us,” continued the head of American diplomacy. “We have certain principles that play a very important role for the integrity, the territorial integrity of countries.”
Commenting on the incident with an American drone which was intercepted by a Russian plane over the Black Sea and crashed, the Secretary of State said that the images currently broadcast on television speak for themselves .
“It is clear that some Russians… are responsible for this, and we have additional risks. So that’s really a problem, but right now we’re just discussing the details,” Blinken said.
Blinken also condemned Russia for its approach to the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which allowed the export of millions of tons of grain from Ukraine despite the war, thus alleviating the dire food situation in African countries and other regions.
“It must be supported, but unfortunately Russia is threatening to block this project, and we insist that this project can continue,” Blinken said.
Blinken arrived in Niger after visiting Ethiopia. Analysts see his African tour as an attempt to strengthen US relations with a region of the world where Russia and China seek to increase their influence.
At a press conference with his Nigerian counterpart, Blinken announced $150 million in humanitarian aid for Africa’s Sahel region, which includes Niger, Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali and Mauritania.
The subject of the conflict in Ukraine came up during a press conference when Blinken was asked to comment on Poland’s decision to send MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine to help defend itself.
Ukraine has requested advanced air power to counter the Russian offensive, but the United States has so far resisted.
According to Blinken, this is a sovereign decision of Poland, and “different countries do different things” to help Ukraine defend against Russian aggression.
