U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg discussed Russian actions on the border with Ukraine and the upcoming meeting of NATO foreign ministers in a telephone conversation, the U.S. State Department said Thursday.
"Secretary of State Anthony Blinken discussed with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg reports of unusual Russian military activity near Ukraine," State Department spokesman Ned Price said in a statement.
The two sides also touched on the agenda of a meeting of NATO foreign ministers scheduled for November 30-December 1, Price said.
He said Blinken said he was "looking forward to the foreign ministers meeting in Riga and the dialogue on the full range of issues facing NATO."
Earlier, the head of the Main Intelligence Directorate (GUR) of the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, Kyrylo Budanov, claimed that Russia had concentrated over 92,000 troops near Ukraine's borders and was preparing for an attack in late January or early February 2022, with US and Ukrainian intelligence estimates of the timing of this attack almost identical.
