BREST: EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Thursday that there should be no negotiations with Russian authorities over the fate of Ukraine so long as Moscow is massing troops at the country's border.
"Russian movements are part of the pressure," Borrell told journalists ahead of a meeting of European Union defence and foreign ministers, insisting that there "should not be negotiation under pressure."
The informal meeting comes after tense negotiations between US and Russian officials in Geneva on Monday, which failed to produce an agreement on de-escalating the conflict but saw both sides offer to continue talking.
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"We have received assurances that nothing will be decided nor negotiated without the Europeans, and the coordination with the Americans is absolutely excellent," Borrell said.
Ahead of the EU minister gathering on Thursday he said that "there will not be any decisions taken today because this is an informal meeting", though he indicated that a political statement is likely.
Washington and its allies have accused Russia of planning an invasion after deploying some 100,000 troops in several areas along Ukraine's border.
The move has stoked fears of a repeat of 2014, when Moscow seized the Crimea peninsula and a pro-Russian insurgency broke out in eastern Ukraine that has since claimed more than 13,000 lives.
As tensions have spiralled, Russia has also demanded that NATO must not admit new members, including Ukraine, and has called for the United States to be barred from establishing new bases in former Soviet republics.
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