President Joe Biden of the United States has agreed “in principle” to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss the Ukraine problem.
The White House stated that the negotiations proposed by France will only take place if Russia does not invade its neighbor.
The conference may provide a diplomatic solution to one of Europe’s toughest security challenges in decades.
According to US authorities, intelligence indicates that Russia is preparing to conduct a military operation, which Russia rejects.
The French presidency revealed the idea following two phone discussions between President Emmanuel Macron and Russian President Vladimir Putin that lasted over three hours in total.
The second meeting took place in the early hours of Monday morning Moscow time, following a 15-minute call between Mr Macron and Mr Biden.
Details of the proposed summit will be discussed during a meeting between US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Thursday, according to Mr Macron’s office.
The White House stated in a statement that Russia appeared to be “continuing preparations for a full-scale assault on Ukraine very soon,” and that the US was prepared to impose “swift and severe repercussions” if that happened.
According to the Biden administration, Russia has gathered up to 190,000 troops surrounding Ukraine, including separatist forces in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk provinces.
New satellite imagery from the US company Maxar revealed many new field deployments of Russian armoured equipment and people near the Ukraine border, indicating increasing military readiness.
According to the French presidency, Mr Putin agreed on the need to “prioritize a diplomatic solution” to the problem. It stated “intensive work” would be done in the “coming few hours” to enable a meeting aimed at a ceasefire.
Mr Putin, according to the Kremlin, blamed the Ukrainian military for the rising tensions. Ukraine has vehemently denied this, claiming that Moscow is waging a provocation campaign in order to create a pretext for action.
However, the French presidency announced that both leaders agreed to resume discussions through the Normandy Format, a group comprised of Russia, Ukraine, France, and Germany that was formed to resolve the situation in eastern Ukraine.
Mr Putin’s assurances to Mr Macron were a “positive indicator” that he would still “engage in seeking a diplomatic solution,” according to UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Mr Johnson, on the other hand, urged Mr Putin to “retract his current threats and withdraw soldiers from Ukraine’s border.”
Earlier this week, Russia declared that military drills in Belarus, where 30,000 Russian troops are stationed, will be extended beyond Sunday. One reason for the exercises’ extension, according to a Belarusian statement, is the “deterioration of the situation” in eastern Ukraine.
His comments came as unverified reports in the US media suggested Washington believed an attack could be launched imminently.
According to the study, an invasion would start with a cyber-attack, followed by a missile and airstrike campaign before land forces sought to conquer Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital.
According to CNN, Russia’s conventional forces are now poised near the Ukrainian border, according to an anonymous intelligence officer. According to the source, the concentration of Russian forces within striking distance of Ukraine was “exceptional.”
However, Ukraine’s Defense Minister, Alexei Reznikov, claimed an attack “today or tomorrow” was improbable because no Russian “strike formations” had yet formed near the border.
Other recent developments include:
On Sunday, a day after two Ukrainian soldiers were murdered, rebels and government forces accused one other of breaking a ceasefire dozens of times.
Thousands of civilians are being evacuated from separatist territory into Russia, out of a population of several million, while males of fighting age are being mobilized to fight.
The US embassy in Moscow issued a warning to Americans about possible attacks in public locations in Russia, notably near the Ukrainian border. The move was slammed by a Russian foreign ministry spokesman.
Mr Putin has demanded guarantees that Ukraine, a former Soviet state with close ties to Russia, will not be admitted to Nato, despite the Western alliance’s denial that Ukraine poses a threat to Russia.
There are fears that a Russian military intervention could start a war even bloodier than the conflict in eastern Ukraine which has cost at least 14,000 lives.
