US President Joe Biden on Tuesday urged Russian President Vladimir Putin to ease mounting tensions with neighboring Ukraine, joining a pushback against a buildup of troops along their border that has alarmed NATO allies.
As a new report from US intelligence said that Russia was not seeking direct conflict with the US, Biden in a telephone conversation with Putin proposed a summit between the two leaders at a neutral venue in the coming months.
The Russian buildup at the Ukrainian border has caused growing concern in the West in the past few days, with the US saying that troop levels are at their highest since 2014, when war first broke out with Moscow-backed separatists.
Biden “voiced our concerns over the sudden Russian military buildup in occupied Crimea and on Ukraine’s borders, and called on Russia to de-escalate tensions,” the White House said after the telephone call.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said that Biden was “not looking for an establishment of trust as much as a predictability and stability” in relations with Russia.
The Kremlin said that it would “continue dialogue” without accepting the offer for a first summit with Biden, who came to office vowing a tougher line on Russia, including over its alleged interference in US elections and harsh treatment of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny.
Putin similarly held a summit in Finland in 2018 with then-US president Donald Trump, who caused a furor at home by appearing to accept the Russian leader’s denials of election meddling.
The Biden-Putin call came as Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Dmytro Kuleba met in Brussels with top officials of NATO nations, including US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.
“Russia’s considerable military buildup is unjustified, unexplained and deeply concerning — Russia must end this military buildup in and around Ukraine, stop its provocations and de-escalate immediately,” Stoltenberg said at his meeting with Kuleba.
Blinken also met with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, both of whom expressed deep concern over Russian troop movements, a European statement said.
In a clear sign that Washington is looking to bolster its backing for European allies, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced that the US is sending about 500 new personnel to Germany.
Russian Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu hit back, saying that Moscow has deployed troops to its western borders for “combat training exercises” in answer to NATO military moves.
“In response to the alliance’s military activities that threaten Russia, we took appropriate measures,” Shoigu said in televised remarks, adding that the exercises would be completed within two weeks.
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