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Biden Says U.S., Germany In 'Lockstep' On Approach To Ukraine As Macron, Putin Meet In Moscow

By RFE/RL February 07, 2022

Germany and the United States are in "lockstep" as they work to address tensions caused by Russia's troop buildup near Ukraine, U.S. President Joe Biden said as he welcomed German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the White House.

Biden said on February 7 that Germany and the U.S. were working to further deter Russian aggression in Europe. Scholz said ahead of the meeting that the West was unified in its approach to the problem and would act swiftly and decisively if Russia invades Ukraine.

The White House meeting got under way after French President Emmanuel Macron began talks with Russia's Vladimir Putin in Moscow amid the fresh international diplomatic efforts aimed at reducing tensions over Russia's military buildup near Ukraine.

Scholz's visit to Washington is his first since succeeding Angela Merkel in December and it aims to raise Berlin's profile as a mediator in the Ukraine crisis after the new German leader faced criticism for not agreeing to send weapons to Ukraine.

Before departing for Washington, Scholz repeated that Germany would not send weapons to Ukraine but said Berlin would be prepared to send troops to the Baltic states.

Germany leads a NATO operation in Lithuania and has about 500 soldiers stationed there. The German defense minister announced plans on February 7 to send up to 350 more troops to Lithuania.

In Moscow, Macron told Putin that he hoped the talks could lead to an easing of the tensions.

"This discussion can make a start in the direction in which we need to go, which is toward a de-escalation," Macron said on February 7 before the two leaders began their meeting. He added that he hoped to "avoid a war" and "build elements of confidence, stability, and visibility for everyone."

Putin hailed France's role in shaping European security and noted that the talks came on the anniversary of a friendship treaty signed 30 years ago.

"I realize that we share concern about what's going on in Europe in the security sphere," Putin told Macron, adding that he appreciates his efforts to help ensure "an equal security in Europe" and broker a settlement to the Ukrainian crisis.

Ahead of the meeting, the Kremlin sought to tamp down any high expectations, with spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying no decisive headway was anticipated.

"The situation is too complex to expect decisive breakthroughs in one meeting," Peskov told reporters, despite calling the talks "very important."

Macron spoke with Biden by phone on February 6. The 40-minute call allowed the two leaders to "share information about contacts made during the weekend" for good coordination ahead of the trip, the French presidency said.

The West says Russia has amassed more than 100,000 troops at the border in what it suspects could be a prelude to an invasion of Ukraine.

Russia denies it plans to invade but has demanded wide-ranging security guarantees, including that Ukraine never be allowed to join NATO.

On February 7, a top Russian diplomat linked nuclear-arms-control talks between Moscow and Washington to the fulfillment of the Kremlin's security guarantees.

"Our further dialogue with Americans regarding the strategic stability, to a big extent, will depend on how the issues linked to security guarantees are solved," Vladimir Yermakov, the head of nuclear nonproliferation and controls at Russia's Foreign Ministry told Russian news agency RIA.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-macron- ukraine-scholz-german-biden/31690709.html

Copyright (c) 2022. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.