NATO sends reinforcements to eastern Europe as Russia accuses West of hysteria

It wants NATO never to admit Ukraine and to pull back troops and weapons from former Communist countries in eastern Europe that joined it after the Cold War.Washington says those demands are non-starters but it is ready to discuss other ideas on arms control, missile deployments and confidence-building measures.Russia is awaiting a written U.S. response this week after talks last Friday - the fourth round this month - produced no breakthrough.'PAINFUL, VIOLENT AND BLOODY'Asked whether he thought an invasion was imminent, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told broadcasters that intelligence was "pretty gloomy on this point" but that "sense can still prevail."He repeated Western warnings that invading Ukraine would be "a painful, violent and bloody business" for Russia.The United States and the European Union, wary of Russia's intentions since it seized Crimea and backed separatists fighting government forces in eastern Ukraine in 2014, have told Russia it will face crippling penalties if it attacks again.EU foreign ministers meeting in Brussels warned Russia it would face "massive" consequences, but are divided over how tough to be on Moscow and did not say what the consequences might be.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told EU President Charles Michel by phone that it was important for Kyiv that the EU showed unity."Ukraine will not fall for provocations, and together with its partners, will remain calm and restrained," his office said.The European Commission, the EU executive body, proposed a 1.2-billion euro ($1.36-billion) financial aid package to help Ukraine mitigate the effects of the conflict.A Russian delegation source said political advisers from Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany would meet in Paris on Wednesday for talks on resolving the conflict in eastern Ukraine, in which some 15,000 people have been killed since 2014.