Antony Blinken: The guitar-loving secretary of state with Russia on his mind

The self-confessed Beatlemaniac is facing his biggest test on the world stage – dealing with Moscow’s troop build-up on the border with Ukraine, writes Chris Stevenson

There are few people US president Joe Biden would want fronting up Washington’s diplomacy on this issue than his secretary of state (AP)

“Hey, you don’t know how lucky you are, boy,“ runs a lyric in “Back in the USSR” – although self-confessed Beatlemanic and US secretary of state Antony Blinken may not feel that way right now in dealing with the build-up of Russian troops on the border with Ukraine.

It is the biggest test of Blinken’s year in office – and his recent few days visiting Kiev, Berlin and Geneva will probably have involved plenty of tension. Particularly Friday in Geneva, when Blinken met with the Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov. Blinken reiterated that the US and its allies were committed to diplomacy but “if that proves impossible, and Russia decides to pursue aggression against Ukraine, to a united, swift and severe response.”

It is a fine line Blinken is treading, seemingly unconvinced by Lavrov’s repeated denials that Moscow is looking to invade Ukraine. “We’re looking at what is visible to all, and it is deeds and actions and not words that make all the difference,” the secretary of state said. Washington and its European and Nato partners have been clear that they will not acquiesce to Russia’s demands – that Nato promise Ukraine will never be added as a member, that no alliance weapons will be deployed near Russian borders, and that troops are pulled back from central and eastern Europe. Blinken added that he believed that the Kremlin and the White House are now “on a clearer path to understanding each other’s positions” and Lavrov called the talks “constructive” – but there has been no major shift in position.