U.S. and allies issue Ukraine warning ahead of Putin-Biden summit

The U.S., the UK, France, Germany and Italy have coordinated plans to impose economic sanctions on Russia if President Vladimir Putin invades Ukraine.

Leaders from the four countries held calls overnight ahead of a meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and Putin. Russia says it has no plans to invade its western neighbor and instead has warned against hostile intentions from Kyiv. However, the U.S. claims both its intelligence and a build-up of Russian troops on the border suggest a threat exists.

Biden will discuss the issue directly with his Russian counterpart in a high-profile video call today.

Reuters reported Biden is considering the option of economic measures that would harm Russia's ability to access foreign currency and therefore conduct trade.

Biden spoke to French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson overnight.

The group called on Russia to de-escalate tensions and return to diplomacy. The White House said their teams will stay in close touch, including in consultation with NATO allies and EU partners, on a "coordinated and comprehensive approach."

Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskiy visits troops facing separatist forces in his country's east. /Ukrainian presidential press-service

Tensions

In addition to the U.S., Ukraine and NATO powers have expressed strong concern about the build-up of Russian troops near the border, sparking fears of a possible attack. Moscow denies any such plan and accuses Kyiv of building up its own forces in its east, where Russian-backed separatists control a large part of Ukrainian territory.

Washington has urged both countries to return to a set of agreements signed in 2014 and 2015, designed to end a separatist war by Russian-speakers in eastern Ukraine.

During the talks with Biden, Putin is expected to warn against the threat to Russia and its allies from NATO expansion in eastern Europe, according to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, who described the state of relations with the U.S. as "lamentable."

Putin has said he wants legally binding guarantees NATO will not expand further eastwards and a pledge that certain types of weapons will not be deployed in countries close to Russia, including Ukraine.

Source(s): Reuters