The Kremlin responded on Tuesday to French claims that President Vladimir Putin has not promised Emmanuel Macron that Moscow will not launch any further military operations in Ukraine.
The Kremlin’s Dmitry Peskov said Russia and France hadn’t yet been able to strike a deal on de-escalating tensions around Ukraine, but that one was needed, and that the meeting had laid the groundwork for further negotiations.
During a long conversation between Macron and Putin on Monday evening in Moscow, a French official said Putin committed to de-escalation.
French officials have reported that Putin also agreed that troops participating in a military exercise near Ukraine’s border will be withdrawn after the war games end on 20 February.
The diplomatic effort to defuse tensions around Ukraine continued on Tuesday, as the French leader reached Kyiv the day after hours of talks with the Russian leader.
Over 100,000 Russian troops are massed near Ukraine’s borders, however, Moscow insists it has no plans to attack Ukraine.
The Kremlin has demanded assurances from the West that NATO will not accept Ukraine and other former Soviet nations as members, cease weapon deployments there and roll back its forces from Eastern Europe – demands the US and NATO reject as nonstarters.
Western countries, particularly the US, are concerned that Putin is planning an invasion of Ukraine. Moscow says it has no plans to invade, but it may take unspecified “military-technical measures” if a variety of security criteria are not met, including a commitment from NATO that Kyiv will never be admitted.
Meanwhile, Russia has been threatened with penalties by the United States and the European Union if it invades Ukraine.
“There will be no Nord Stream 2” if Russia invades Ukraine, US President Joe Biden stated on Monday.
