Russia’s ‘Formal Démarche’ to U.S. Ambassador: Increased U.S. Involvement Has Consequences

Feb. 21, 2023, 2022 (EIRNS)—The Russian Foreign Ministry (in Russian) today issued “a formal démarche” to the U.S. Ambassador to Moscow Lynne Tracy who was summoned to the ministry/. The statement protested “the growing involvement of the United States in hostilities on the side of the Kiev regime.” The ministry charged that the U.S. is “pumping the Ukrainian military with arms and providing it with targeting information for strikes on Russian military and civilian infrastructure.” Such policies “clearly prove that assertions of the American side that the U.S. is not a party to the conflict are inadequate and false.” They warned the U.S. ambassador that not only Western-supplied weapons, but also the personnel who are operating them, including U.S. citizens, are “legitimate targets” for Russia’s military.

The statement continued: The “current aggressive course of the U.S. to deepen confrontation with Russia in all areas is counterproductive.” However, if the U.S. wanted to de-escalate the situation, it should “take steps envisaging the withdrawal of U.S.-NATO military and equipment, as well as the cessation of hostile anti-Russian activities.”

In what the Foreign Ministry considered a related matter, it also pointed out that the U.S. should offer an explanation for the explosions that ruptured the Nord Stream gas pipelines last September, adding that Washington should not “hinder an objective investigation to identify those responsible.”