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French President Emmanuel Macron discussed the Ukraine crisis with his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden on Sunday ahead of a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, both leaders' offices said.
The two leaders "discussed ongoing diplomatic and deterrence efforts in response to Russia's continued military build-up on Ukraine's borders and affirmed their support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity," the White House said in a statement.
The 40-minute call allowed the two leaders to "share information about contacts made during the weekend" for good coordination ahead of the trip, the French presidency said.
Macron is expected to travel to Moscow on Monday and on to Kiev on Tuesday, where he is due to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
The French leader has indicated that he is going to "discuss terms of a de-escalation" of the crisis.
Over the weekend, Macron also held talks with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) chief Jens Stoltenberg and the leaders of Baltic nations.
During a phone conversation between Macron and Putin last week, Kremlin said the two leaders continued their "substantive dialogue" on the situation regarding Ukraine and the establishment of long-term and legally binding security guarantees between Russia and the West.
Putin and Macron held phone calls on January 28 and 31 to exchange views on the same issue, as tensions between Russia and the U.S.-led NATO have flared up over the past weeks.
Ukraine on Sunday pushed back at "apocalyptic predictions" over a potential Russian invasion.
"Do not believe the apocalyptic predictions. Different capitals have different scenarios, but Ukraine is ready for any development," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba wrote on Twitter.
(CGTN)
