Ukraine allies set days of talks with Russia

Ukraine’s allies will hold bilateral and multilateral
discussions with Russia on the week of Jan. 10. The meetings include direct
talks between Russia and the U.S. on Jan. 10, the NATO-Russia Council on Jan.
12, and the OSCE Permanent Council on Jan. 13, france24.com reported on Dec.
28.

The announcements come as Russia announced that 10,000
(of over 100,000) military personnel had completed their deployment to Crimea
and were being returned to their bases. However, Russian president Vladimir
Putin insisted in a press conference on Dec. 23 that the West accept its
demands “immediately. Right now”.  Russia also test fired a salvo of its
Zircon hypersonic missiles for the first time on Dec. 24, voanews.com reported.

James Hydzik: The
Russians’ rhetoric and sabre-rattling is likely to intensify before the talks begin,
so increased tension should be expected. However, the fact that the Kremlin
usually raises its rhetoric before talks is not an excuse to dismiss the
urgency of the situation.