The United States hopes that negotiations with Russia on security would continue, a US Department of State spokesperson was quoted as saying by Newsweek, Trend reports citing TASS.
"We are hopeful these talks will continue, but if Russia steps away from the table, it will become clear that they were never willing to engage," the spokesperson added. "Throughout it all, we will closely coordinate with our Allies and partners, which will continue in the days and weeks ahead," he said.
"The coming days will provide a better indication of whether Russia is genuinely interested in diplomacy, if they are prepared to negotiate seriously in good faith, or whether they will use discussions as a pretext to claim that diplomacy couldn't address their interests," the official added.
In his words, US President Joe Biden "made clear that if Russia chooses to pursue confrontation, the United States and our NATO Allies will impose significant and severe economic harm on the Russian economy."
"We are preparing for all contingencies, as we have been doing for weeks now," the spokesperson added.