Some US allies near Russia are suspicious of the Biden-Putin summit

Published Sunday, June 13th, 2021 | 11:31 pm

Updated on Sunday, June 13th, 2021 | 11:40 pm

Kiev, Ukraine (AP) – Central and Eastern European nations are concerned about the upcoming summit between US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin as they are skeptical of what they see as the hostile intentions of the Kremlin.

Some in countries that were once part of the Soviet Union or the Moscow-led Warsaw Pact during the Cold War fear Washington may reduce support for its allies in the region in order to ensure a more stable and predictable relationship with Russia.

“I think there were doubts about the determination of the current government to take a firm stand against the aggressive Russian attacks,” said Witold Rodkiewicz, chief specialist in Russian politics at the Warsaw Center for Eastern Studies, a state-funded think tank that advises the Polish government.

Both Russia and the US have tried to dampen expectations about Wednesday’s Geneva summit and rule out any breakthroughs amid the worst tensions between the two powers since Soviet times, particularly following Moscow’s annexation of the Ukrainian Crimean peninsula, allegations of the Russian interference in the US elections and hacking attacks, as well as other tribes.

However, Rodkiewicz took note of the White House’s decision to waive sanctions against the German company overseeing the future Nord Stream 2 natural gas pipeline built in Russia under the Baltic Sea to Germany. This project could potentially allow Moscow to bypass Ukraine, Poland and other countries in Eastern and Central Europe that charge transit fees for the energy.

“The government has clearly and unequivocally signaled that for them Europe is basically Germany and that German interests are being taken into account, while the interests of other actors in Europe are being pushed into the background. “Rodkiewicz told the Associated Press.

Nowhere else are worries about the summit greater than in Ukraine. It has been embroiled in a tense tug-of-war with Russia since the annexation of the Crimean peninsula following the overthrow of Moscow-friendly President of Ukraine in 2014 and a Russia-backed separatist uprising in the east of the country – a conflict that has claimed more than 14,000 lives .

“Ukraine fears that agreements between Biden and Putin could turn it into a peripheral country,” said Vadim Karasev, an independent political scientist from Kiev.

Kiev fears that Nord Stream 2 will not only cut the transit fees for pumping Russian gas to Europe, but also undermine and politically weaken its strategic importance.

A failure by the US to block the pipeline would be “a personal loss for President Biden” and a “serious geopolitical victory for the Russian Federation,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

He tried unsuccessfully to press for a meeting with Biden before the summit, but spoke to him over the phone. Biden assured Zelenskyi of the unwavering support of the US for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.

Kiev seemed overly concerned with interpreting the conversation in its favor. In its first reading of the call, Zelenskyi’s office claimed that Biden had emphasized the importance of offering Ukraine a specific roadmap for joining NATO. But she then changed that version to make it clear that it was Zelenskyi who urged Ukraine to submit an action plan for membership; Biden had promised that Kiev’s position would be taken into account when discussing strategic issues within NATO.

In an interview on Russian state television, Putin warned again that the prospect of Ukraine joining NATO was unacceptable for Russia. He noted that the Alliance missiles would reach Moscow and other key targets in western Russia in just seven minutes, a destabilizing situation that, in his opinion, was akin to when Russia dropped its missiles in Mexico or Canada.

In 2008 NATO promised that Ukraine and Georgia would finally be able to join the alliance despite protests from Russia. Four months later, Russia waged Georgia in a five-day war that erupted as the Georgian leadership tried to regain control of a separatist region.

Earlier this year, Russia reinforced its armed forces near Ukraine and warned Kiev that it could intervene militarily if the Ukrainian authorities attempt to retake the rebel-controlled east. Moscow has now withdrawn at least some of its troops, but Ukrainian officials say Russia has held a massive contingent near the border.

“The Kremlin has signaled that Ukraine’s NATO bid is linked to a new, hot conflict in Europe that Washington definitely does not want,” said Karasev.

Alex Petriashvili, Senior Fellow of the Think Tank of the Rondeli Foundation in Tbilisi, Georgia, regretted the lack of consensus within NATO on granting clear membership plans for Ukraine and Georgia.

“It certainly has a negative impact on the aspirations of the two countries and gives Russia an advantage that is vehemently opposed to their membership,” said Petriashvili.

The Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis argued that Russia was trying to “restore control over the internal, foreign and security policies of the states in Central and Eastern Europeâ€, which it saw as part of its “privileged sphere of interestâ€.

“As in Soviet times, both conventional and hybrid measures are used to maintain control,” he told AP.

Russia rejects allegations that it is trying to destabilize the countries or withdraw them into orbit. It accuses the members of the European Union and NATO, who were once part of the Soviet Union or the Warsaw Pact, of “Russophobia” and makes them the main instigators of Western sanctions that restrict Moscow’s access to global capital markets and the import of modern technology.

Landsbergis shrugged off fears that Washington might leave its Central and Eastern European allies out in the rain.

“We have no reason to doubt our closest transatlantic ally,” Landsbergis told AP. “The Biden government has on numerous occasions underscored its commitment to work in close coordination with its European allies.”

Latvia’s top diplomat Edgars Rinkevics also emphasized that Washington “remains steadfastly our closest ally†and “plays a key role in European securityâ€.

Ondrej Ditrych, director of the think tank Institute of International Relations, also said he expected Biden to take a firm stance in Geneva.

“Biden is not naive, even if the government seems to be making attempts in the run-up to the summit to get Russia to seriously discuss strategic issues,” he said in Prague. “I wouldn’t worry about a détente that would harm the Central and Eastern European countries.”

Some others are not that optimistic.

“The real cause for concern is that Putin might come out of this meeting encouraged by what he sees on the other side, and that might make him more courageous to take advantage of his regional context,” said Rodkiewicz, the Warsaw-based analyst.

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Isachenkov reported from Moscow. Associated Press Writer Monika Scislowska in Warsaw, Poland; Liudas Dapkus in Vilnius, Lithuania; Jari Tanner in Tallinn, Estonia; Karel Janicek in Prague, Czech Republic; and Sophiko Megrelidze in Tbilisi, Georgia, contributed.