French President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Berlin Tuesday evening for talks with the leaders of Germany and Poland on the Ukraine crisis, after a round of shuttle diplomacy between Moscow and Kyiv.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who himself just returned from a visit to Washington dominated by the Ukraine tensions, is hosting the meeting with Macron and Polish President Andrzej Duda in a bid to present a united front.
Earlier, Macron said he saw a path forward on easing tensions with Russia over Ukraine, after conducting an urgent round of shuttle diplomacy between Moscow and Kyiv.
This follows talks with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv a day after a five-hour meeting at the Kremlin with Russia's Vladimir Putin, as the West scrambles to defuse fears Moscow could invade its ex-Soviet neighbour.
During their meeting in Moscow on Monday, President Vladimir Putin told Macron that Russia would "do everything to find compromises that suit everyone", raising the prospect of a path to de-escalating the situation.
Putin said several proposals put forward by Macron could form a basis for moving forward on the crisis over Ukraine, saying: "A number of his ideas, proposals ... are possible as a basis for further steps."
The Russian president did not provide any further details but said the two leaders would speak by phone after Macron meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
▶️ Live: Macron heads to Kyiv as Putin says prepared to compromise https://t.co/bBdo0sLkHf pic.twitter.com/qNs2Jgky57
— FRANCE 24 English (@France24_en) February 8, 2022
- Macron in Moscow: Is Putin planning a war or is Ukraine a game of brinksmanship?
- Paris talks on Ukraine overshadowed by hard line US-Russia rhetoric
The French president said he has proposed "concrete security guarantees" to Putin, adding that his Russian counterpart was ready to engage and maintain stability and the territorial integrity of Ukraine.
"There is no security for the Europeans if there is no security for Russia," he added.
The French presidency said the proposals include an engagement from both sides not to take any new military action, the launching of a new strategic dialogue and efforts to revive the peace process in Kyiv's conflict with Moscow-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine.
Tensions persist
During the meeting, Putin denied that Russia was acting aggressively towards Ukraine or the West, saying "it is not us who are moving towards Nato's borders".
If Ukraine joins the Western military bloc, Russia could get sucked into a conflict with European countries, he added.
"Do you want France to go to war with Russia?" Putin said.
Ukraine, a former Soviet republic, has expressed a desire for closer ties with the West and membership of the Nato military alliance that sought to contain Moscow and its Communist allies during the Cold War.
Putin has complained that Nato's eastward expansion following the end of the Cold War has undermined Russia's security.
Pres. Biden: "If Russia invades...then there will be no longer a Nord Stream 2. We will bring an end to it."
— ABC News (@ABC) February 7, 2022
Reporter: "But how will you do that, exactly, since...the project is in Germany's control?"
Biden: "I promise you, we will be able to do that." https://t.co/uruQ4F4zM9 pic.twitter.com/4ksDaaU0YC
Biden's warning on Nord Stream 2
Meanwhile, US President Joe Biden warned Putin that he would "end" the controversial new Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Europe if Moscow sends forces across the Ukrainian border as it did during the 2014 annexation of Crimea.
Speaking at a joint press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Washington, Biden underlined: "If Russia invades - that means tanks or troops crossing the border of Ukraine, again - then there will be no longer a Nord Stream 2."
"I promise you," the president added, "we will bring an end to it."
Biden's declaration was the bluntest so far on the fate of the massive pipeline, which is complete but has yet to begin funnelling natural gas to Germany, tying energy-hungry Europe ever closer to Russia.
Chancellor Scholz, was less direct and said only that Berlin was "united" with Washington, but declined to mention the pipeline by name.
Scholz himself is due in Moscow and Kyiv next week for talks with Putin and Zelensky.
