‘War Between Nuclear-Armed Powers Is Not an Option’: Calls for Diplomacy Surge.

“De-escalation and diplomacy are the only way to secure peace,” said British MP Jeremy Corbyn.
JAKE JOHNSONFebruary 22, 2022

As long as there is any hope of preventing a wider war, it is our duty to pursue it.”

The urgency of diplomatic steps to avert a war in Eastern Europe reached new heights Tuesday following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s move to recognize two breakaway regions in Ukraine as independent and deploy troops—described as “peacekeeping” forces—to the Donbas, heightening fears of an all-out military conflict. In a statement late Monday, a spokesperson for United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said that he is “greatly concerned by the decision by the Russian Federation related to the status of certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine.”

Guterres “calls for the peaceful settlement of the conflict in eastern Ukraine, in accordance with the Minsk Agreements, as endorsed by the Security Council in Resolution 2202,” said the spokesperson. “The secretary-general urges all relevant actors to focus their efforts on ensuring an immediate cessation of hostilities, protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure, preventing any actions and statements that may further escalate the dangerous situation in and around Ukraine, and prioritizing diplomacy to address all issues peacefully.”

The statement came as the U.S., the European Union, and the United Kingdom prepared to respond to Putin’s actions with a “barrage” of fresh economic sanctions targeting Russia itself as well as Donetsk and Luhansk.

Shortly after Putin signed decrees formally recognizing the independence of the two self-proclaimed people’s republics in eastern Ukraine, U.S. President Joe Biden signed an executive order barring Americans from investing in the regions and prohibiting “the importation into the United States, directly or indirectly, of any goods, services, or technology from the so-called DNR or LNR.”