Russia & US Talks Haven’t Gone Far to Diffuse Tensions on the border.

Special negotiations between US and Russian negotiators ended on Monday, with the goal of de-escalating existing tensions over Ukraine and an increase in military activities along Russia’s western border.

There was little immediate information on the outcome of the bilateral negotiations, which lasted more than seven hours in Geneva, Switzerland. Senior diplomats on both sides appear to be indicating that a major breakthrough is unlikely to occur soon.

During a news conference on Monday, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov remarked, “
“Unfortunately we have a great disparity in our principled approaches to this,” “The U.S. and Russia in some ways have opposite views on what needs to be done”

Despite the lack of specifics, Ryabkov stated following the meeting that Moscow had no ambitions to attack Ukraine.

Ryabkov and his colleagues met with Wendy Sherman, the US deputy secretary of state, as part of the “Strategic Security Dialogue” talks begun by Presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin during their June conference in Geneva on arms control and other broad issues.

Ned Price, a spokesman for the US Department of State, said in a statement that while the deputy secretary is eager to listen to Russia’s concerns while embracing meaningful progress through diplomacy, she is not willing to discuss European security issues without its partners present.

About a week before the talks, Moscow made public a list of demands from the US and its Western partners, which included security guarantees and a call for NATO to stop expanding eastward into former Soviet republics like Ukraine.

Price stated that conversations about European security will be held during the NATO-Russia Council meeting on January 12 in Brussels, as well as the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) meeting the following day in Vienna.

On a conference call with reporters, Sherman claimed that some of Russia’s pledges are “just non-starters for the United States,” while Ryabkov said Monday’s talks were “optimistic,” but that he doesn’t see a satisfactory agreement from the US side.

Ryabkov further stated that “making sure that Ukraine never, ever, ever becomes a member of NATO” is “absolutely mandatory.”

“We do not trust the other side, so to say. We need iron-clad, waterproof, bulletproof, legally binding guarantees. Not assurances, not safeguards, guarantees with all the words ‘shall, must,’ everything that should be put in, ‘never ever becoming a member of NATO.’ It’s a matter of Russia’s national security, ” he stated.

In response, Sherman stated that US authorities will not make choices about Ukraine without the approval of the Ukrainian people, and that the US will “not forego bilateral cooperation with sovereign states that wish to work with the United States.”

The meeting on January 10 was followed by an informal working dinner on January 9, at which Ryabkov expected “tough talks” that would be followed by the NATO-Russia conference in Brussels.

The scheduled meetings, according to NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, will not resolve all difficulties, but they will pave the way for a deeper understanding of each other.

“I don’t think that we can expect that these meetings will solve all the issues,” Stoltenberg told reporters in Brussels. “What we are hoping for is that we can agree on a way forward, that we can agree on a series of meetings, that we can agree on a process.” 

Russia has stated that it wants all concerns settled this month, but NATO is concerned that Putin may be seeking for an excuse to launch an invasion, such as a negotiating failure.

After almost 100,000 Russian troops collected within striking distance of the Ukrainian border eight years after Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula from the former Soviet republic, Western nations expressed worry.

Russia has frequently rejected invasion preparations, claiming that it is reacting to what it sees as aggressive behavior by NATO and Ukraine, which has shifted its allegiance to the West and desires to join NATO.

Biden, the EU, and the Group of Seven nations have previously warned Putin that additional aggression against Ukraine would result in “massive consequences” and economic penalties.

On Jan. 9, Ryabkov reiterated Moscow’s three demands, adding that the country wants no more NATO enlargement, no missiles on its borders, and no military drills, intelligence operations, or infrastructure outside of its 1997 borders.

“The Russian side came here with a clear position that contains a number of elements that, to my mind, are understandable and have been so clearly formulated—including at a high level—that deviating from our approaches simply is not possible,” Ryabkov said.

More updates to come on the status of this stalemate in the future. I’d encourage everyone to take note of the circumstances on the Russia/Ukraine border, but don’t let it bog you down. 1 Peter 4:12-14 says: “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.” Stay inquisitive in the word of God, and the world around you.

Dr. Robert Malone, Dr. Robert Malone, a virologist and immunologist who has worked on the development of mRNA vaccines, reacted to recent banning imposed by Twitter and LinkedIn.

In response to comments he’s made concerning vaccine mandates, Malone told EpochTV’s “American Thought Leaders” program on Wednesday, “I felt compelled by my own ethics, that I needed to speak about what I was observing.”

“I may be one of the very few that has this depth of understanding of the technology that doesn’t have a direct financial conflict of interest,” Malone continued. “If I’m not allowed to speak about my concerns, whether they’re right or wrong, who is a valid person to participate in the dialogue?”

Malone said he and Dr. Peter McCullough, a cardiologist who recently argued that COVID-19 vaccine mandates should be repealed, have been “shut down, attacked, and had purposeful attacks” against their medical licenses or freedom to practice medicine as a result of their publicly vocal opposition to COVID-19 vaccine requirements and mandatory vaccinations in children.

Malone’s Twitter account was disabled without warning last week for apparent violations of the platform’s COVID-19 regulations. During the interview on Wednesday, Malone also confirmed that his LinkedIn account had been suspended.

During the conversation, Malone mentioned the “mass formation psychosis,” also known as mass hysteria, people are experiencing on his podcast with Joe Rogan approximately a week ago.

“I mean, it has been amazing watching it, and what it demonstrates is the lack of self-awareness by Big Tech,” he remarked, referring to accusations that Google manipulated search results for the word. He continued, “They are caught up in the mass formation themselves, or they are intentionally manipulating” the findings.

“It’s more important to me to help people to get access to the data and learn to think for themselves and make their own opinion,” Malone also said. “I don’t want to tell people what to think I want to help them think and give them the tools to do it.”

Meanwhile, Twitter has been suspending additional accounts for what it claims are violations of its COVID-19 regulations. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene announced on Gettr over the weekend that her personal campaign account had been permanently terminated by the San Francisco-based social media site for allegedly violating its terms and regulations.

“Suspended for tweeting VAERS statistics,” the freshman Republican lawmaker wrote. Greene was banned “for repeated violations of our COVID-19 misinformation policy,” according to a Twitter spokeswoman.

Around the same time, Tom Elliott, the proprietor of video publisher Grabien News, tweeted that his media account had been suspended for releasing a video featuring Rep. Andy Biggs criticizing pharmaceutical companies.

“When you have a society that has become decoupled from each other and has free-floating anxiety in a sense that things don’t make sense, we can’t understand it. And then their attention gets focused by a leader or series of events on one small point, just like hypnosis. They literally become hypnotized and can be led anywhere. They will follow that person. It doesn’t matter if they lie to them or whatever.” said Dr. Robert Malone on the podcast with Joe Rogan.

People were “complaining the world doesn’t make sense” a few years ago, he said, and we weren’t “connected socially anymore, except through social media.” and “Then this thing happened,” Malone added, referring to the COVID-19 epidemic. “That is how mass formation psychosis happens and that is what has happened here.”

It’s time people start thinking about the bigger picture, society, and civilization as a whole. There is a chronological series of events that can and will be evaluated and identified as catalysts leading to this global mirage of a pandemic. This will be heavily documented and evaluated for the sake of historical assessment. If we can collectively collaborate from the lab leak and the motives associated amid political tension, we can move the investigation further. If people don’t wake up and begin asking questions as opposed to letting contradictions fly over their heads, they’ll be disposed of by the machine that is the conglomerate forcing inoculations on humanity. Stay inquisitive in the word of God, and the world around you.