i24news
PublishedApril 02nd 2014
NATO in 'grave concern' over Russia troop buildup
Warning from top commander comes as IMF says Ukraine crisis poses a danger to broader world economy
NATO warned on Wednesday that Russia's military presence on the flashpoint border with Ukraine was of "grave concern" and that Moscow's forces could reach military objectives in just days.
General Philip Breedlove, NATO's top commander, told the Wall Street Journal that Russian troops could invade vast portions of Ukrainian territory in three days to five days.
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said he shared that assessment and warned of a "a very massive Russian military buildup along the Ukrainian border" which NATO estimates at about 40,000 troops.
"This is really a matter of grave concern," Rasmussen said, at the close of a NATO foreign ministers meeting in Brussels.
Breedlove said potential objectives for Russia included a land corridor linking Crimea and mainland Russia, the taking of the strategic Odessa port or an occupation of the breakaway Russian-speaking region of Transdniestr in Moldova.
Rasmussen warned that if Russia were to intervene further in Ukraine, he "would not hesitate to call it an historic mistake."
"It would be a miscalculation with huge strategic implications," he said.
The warning came the day after NATO announced the alliance was suspending all practical cooperation with Russia, military and civilian, and that there was no confirmation that Russian troops were pulling back from the border.
IMF warns of global economic impact
International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde warned Wednesday that the political crisis around Ukraine poses a danger to the broader world economy.
In a speech in Washington, Lagarde said global growth five years after the Great Recession "remains too slow and weak" and faces multiple threats.
For one, low inflation, especially in Europe and Japan, are dangers for demand and output and consequently jobs, Lagarde said at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies.
A second key threat is high corporate leverage in emerging economies, which if not adequately addressed will be worsened by the turmoil from eventual monetary tightening in advanced economies, especially the United States.
"The third obstacle is the rise of geopolitical tensions, which could cloud the global economic outlook," she said. "The situation in Ukraine is one which, if not well managed, could have broader spillover implications."
In addition to Ukraine are other geopolitical problem areas, she added.
"Resolving them requires not only good policies, but good politics. Both are essential to enable the global economy to move into a higher gear."
Last week the IMF announced an ambitious $14-18 billion program to rescue Ukraine's economy after the overthrow of president Viktor Yanukovich.
Tensions with Russia over its annexation of Ukraine's Crimea region have added to the challenge of stabilizing the country.
