U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (file photo)<\/span>
\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\nA statement from the U.S. State Department said Blinken spoke separately with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian about the need for stepped-up consultations among NATO allies as fears grow of a major escalation in the eastern Ukraine conflict.<\/p>\n
Kyiv and the West blame the Russia-backed separatists holding parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions for a recent spike in hostilities, while Moscow has pointed the finger at Kyiv.<\/p>\n
A recent accumulation of photographs, video, and other data has revealed major movements of Russian armed forces toward or near Ukraine’s borders and into Ukraine\u2019s Russian-occupied Crimean Peninsula.<\/p>\n
That has fueled concerns that Moscow may be preparing to send forces into eastern Ukraine.<\/p>\n
The Kremlin has rejected Western calls to pull back its troops, denying they are a threat while adding that military movements within Russia are an internal sovereign issue.<\/p>\n
On April 9, the Kremlin issued a stark warning that Russia could take steps to “protect civilians” in the region in the event of a resumption of full-scale combat operations there.<\/p>\n
The first stop on Austin’s four-country tour is Israel where he is to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Benjamin Gantz.<\/p>\n
The final item on Austin’s agenda, after visiting NATO headquarters in Brussels, is talks in the United Kingdom with Secretary of State for Defense Ben Wallace.<\/p>\n
The Pentagon says the purpose of that visit is “to reaffirm the continuing importance of U.S.-United Kingdom defense cooperation to meet global security challenges.”<\/p>\n
With reporting by Reuters<\/h6>\n<\/div>\n\n
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