Germany warns of imminent Russian-Ukrainian war

By Oliver Towfigh Nia

BERLIN (AA) – German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on Friday warned of an imminent war between Russia and Ukraine, saying it would endanger European security.

A "new war in the middle of our Europe" is threatening, and the deployment of (Russian) troops is an absolutely unacceptable threat against Ukraine, against all of us,” Baerbock said in her address at the Munich Security Conference.

The signals for the partial withdrawal of Russian military forces are a "glimmer of hope," but one should "now also see action," she added.

Baerbock said that it is Moscow – and not Kyiv – which triggered this crisis. "This crisis is not a Ukraine crisis, it is a Russia crisis," she said.

She warned that "if there were a Russian attack on Ukraine, this would have massive consequences for Russia."

Russia is said to have amassed more than 100,000 troops near Ukraine, prompting fears it could be planning a military offensive against its former Soviet neighbor. But Moscow has repeatedly denied that it is preparing to invade.

More than 100 ministers and 30 heads of state and government are attending the three-day conference, which is to dwell on the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.

On Saturday, the foreign ministers of leading democratic economic powers want to meet on the sidelines of the conference to discuss the Ukraine crisis, a German Foreign Ministry spokesperson confirmed earlier this week.

Germany currently chairs the G7 group, which also includes the US, France, Great Britain, Italy, Canada and Japan.

A meeting of the foreign ministers of Germany, France and Ukraine is also planned on the fringes of the conference, according to the German Foreign Ministry.