Biden, Putin Signal Bigger Confrontation Ahead Over Ukraine
Western nations sought to present a united front, with more than two dozen European Union members unanimously agreeing to levy their own initial set of sanctions against Russian officials. Germany also said it was halting the process of certifying the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia — a lucrative deal long sought by Moscow but criticized by the U.S. for increasing Europe’s reliance on Russian energy.
Biden said he was moving additional U.S. troops to the Baltics, though he described the deployments as purely “defensive," asserting, “We have no intention of fighting Russia.” The U.S. is sending about 800 infantry troops and 40 attack aircraft to NATO’s eastern flank from other locations within Europe, according to a senior defense official. In addition, a contingent of F-35 strike fighters and AH-64 Apache attack helicopters will also be relocated.
Putin said the crisis could be resolved if Kyiv recognizes Russia's sovereignty over Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula that Moscow annexed after seizing it from Ukraine in 2014, renounces its bid to join NATO and partially demilitarizes. The West has decried the annexation of Crimea as a violation of international law and has previously flatly rejected permanently barring Ukraine from NATO.
“We think this is, yes, the beginning of an invasion, Russia’s latest invasion into Ukraine,” Jon Finer, principal deputy national security adviser, said on CNN. “An invasion is an invasion, and that is what is underway.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he would consider breaking diplomatic ties with Russia, and Kyiv recalled its ambassador in Moscow.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Biden asked Macron to make offer of Putin-Biden summit to Putin -French officialU.S. President Joe Biden had asked French President Emmanuel Macron to make the offer of a summit between Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin to Putin, said an official from the French Presidency.
Read more »
Biden, Putin tentatively agree to meet as fears over Ukraine war loomPresident Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin have tentatively agreed to meet in a last-ditch diplomatic effort to stave off Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
Read more »
Biden, Putin tentatively agree to meeting as fears of Russian invasion of Ukraine peakFrench President Emmanuel Macron sought to broker a possible meeting between U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin in a series of phone calls that dragged into the night.
Read more »
Biden-Putin meeting discussed as Ukraine war fears loomThe U.S. and Russian presidents have tentatively agreed to meet in a last-ditch diplomatic effort to stave off Moscow's invasion of Ukraine as heavy shelling continued Monday in a conflict in eastern Ukraine that is feared will spark the Russian offensive.
Read more »
Even as Biden-Putin Summit Discussed, Fears of Ukraine War Remain HighThe prospect of a face-to-face summit resuscitated hopes that diplomacy could prevent a devastating conflict
Read more »
Ukraine shelling intensifies amid talk of Biden-Putin summitAmid increased shelling in Eastern Ukraine, French President Macron intensifies efforts to compel President Biden and President Putin to meet.
Read more »