“I would never & nbsp; underestimate President Putin's appetite for risk when it comes to Ukraine. It is very important to respond to & nbsp; is a mixture of deterrence and diplomacy, & nbsp; & mdash; said Mr Burns in & nbsp; during a forum organized by The Wall Street Journal (quoted by & nbsp; Bloomberg).
The intentions of the Russian president, according to the head of the CIA, remain unclear.
“But & nbsp; that & nbsp; we & nbsp; know & nbsp; & mdash; this is that & nbsp; he & nbsp; deployed the Russian armed forces, law enforcement agencies where it is possible to operate on a large scale, & nbsp; & mdash; Reuters reports his words.
Recall that William Burns arrived in & nbsp; Russia in & nbsp; in early November. The main purpose of the trip, according to & nbsp; reports CNN and & nbsp; The Washington Post, was to warn Moscow about & nbsp; that Washington is monitoring & nbsp; the movements of Russian troops near & nbsp; Ukraine.
Burns's statement was made in the & nbsp; eve of the video conference of Mr Putin with & nbsp; US President Joe Biden, which will be held today in & nbsp; closed mode. On the eve of the meeting, the leaders of the United States, Great Britain, France, Germany and & nbsp; Italy supported the territorial integrity of Ukraine and & nbsp; spoke in favor of & nbsp; resuming negotiations in the & nbsp; Normandy format. Bloomberg with & nbsp; citing & nbsp; sources said that & nbsp; during the call, Mr. Biden may mention the possibility of sanctions against major Russian banks, the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and & nbsp; & nbsp; currency exchange.