MP fears Ukraine will be ‘testing mark’ for west’s response to Russia
A senior Conservative MP has said he fears Ukraine will be "the testing mark" for the West's strategy towards Russia, following reports America has warned allies that Russia could be preparing to invade.
The Daily Telegraph reported that US officials have privately briefed EU counterparts on the potential for a military operation as Russian troops are building up near the border.
The paper said the US has said its commitment to Ukraine's security is "ironclad", and that the Kremlin has denied it is an aggressor and has accused the US and Nato of provocation.
It comes as Russia sent paratroopers to Belarus in a show of support for its ally amid tensionsoveraninfluxofmigrants at the border with Poland.
And Belarus' long-time authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko has turned up the heat by threatening to shut down pipelines carrying gas from Russia to western Europe afterreportsthattheeuisplanning a fresh package of sanctions.
"We are heating Europe, and they are threatening us," he said, referring to a Russian gas pipeline that runs through Belarus and into the EU.
"And what if we halt natural gas supplies? Therefore, I would recommend the leadership of Poland, Lithuanians and other empty-headed people to think before speaking."
Conservative MP Tobias Ellwood, who chairs the Commons defence select committee, said he "absolutely" hears thewarningsthatrussiacould be seeking to invade Ukraine.
He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme the US is "absolutely right to flag up this largescale Russian movement off eastern Ukraine".
He said Russia "has form" in taking such actions when the world is "distracted by other events".
Challenged on the a strength of the West's response to the previous annexation of Crimea, Mr Ellwood said the "calculation" Russia is making is that "there will be mass condemnation, there will be security council resolutions, but nothing else will do done. Just as we saw in Syria where red lines were put down but they were then crossed and we did nothing about it.
"The West needs to recognise, particularly after Afghanistan, what we actually stand for, what we believe in, what we're willing to defend."
Mr Ellwood said Russia is "feeling more confident, more assertive, after Afghanistan", and that Nato is "bruised".
Asked what the West has to do to send a new message to Russia, Mr Ellwood said: "This iswhytheunitedstatesismaking this message. Is this going to be the moment where we are going to defend Ukraine's sovereignty, or are we going to step back and allow Russia to advance once again?"
He added: "There needs to be a decent strategy, a strategic approach to how you deal with Russia as a whole. And I fear that it will be Ukraine that will be the testing mark over the next few weeks and months."
Russia has strongly supported Belarus amid a tense standoff this week as thousands of migrants and refugees, most from the Middle East, gathered on the Belarusian side of the border with Poland in the hope of crossing into western Europe.