White House: Biden and Putin discuss Iran
A White House statement said President Joe Biden had a video call today with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss a range of issues on the US-Russian agenda.
The statement said Biden was deeply concerned about the US and its European allies’ increase in Russian forces around Ukraine, and said the United States and its allies would respond with economic and other strong action if tensions escalated.
The White House said in a statement that Biden also reiterated his support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and called for a reduction in tensions and a return to diplomacy.
The statement said that the presidents of the two countries committed their teams to follow up and the United States will do so in close coordination with allies and partners.
According to a White House statement, the US and Russian presidents also discussed the Washington-Kremlin talks on strategic stability, separate ransomware talks, as well as joint cooperation on regional issues such as Iran.
The presidents of the United States and Russia, Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin, met in a virtual meeting on Tuesday morning, local time, which, according to media reports, lasted two hours.
The virtual meeting comes amid US accusations that Russia is increasing its military presence on Ukraine’s borders and intends to attack the country, CNN reported.
In the past few months, Russia has set up supply lines, including medical and fuel units, that could supply its military if Moscow decides to attack, two informed sources told Cyanin in the latest intelligence assessments.
CNN claimed that US intelligence sources estimated that Russia could launch a military offensive against Ukraine in a few months, as 175,000 troops had been deployed along the Ukrainian border.
At a meeting that is one of the most pivotal foreign policy developments during Biden’s presidency, the US president is expected to warn Putin about US sanctions and actions against Russia if it decides to invade Ukraine, a US intelligence official said. .
The American intelligence community believes that Putin has not yet made up his mind to launch a military strike on Ukraine, and Biden intends to tell Putin that Washington is ready to take fundamental economic steps to inflict significant economic damage on Russia.
The two leaders met at the Geneva summit last June. Their last public call was in July.
The day before the US-Russia call, the Pentagon confirmed that Russian forces had increased their military capabilities along Ukraine’s borders.
According to CNN, the US government is also considering options for the possible evacuation of American citizens from Ukraine if Russia invades the country and creates a dire security situation.
Senior State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland on Monday night described the tough sanctions package being prepared by the US government in response to a possible Russian attack, but acknowledged that US options to prevent a possible attack were relatively limited.
White House spokesman Jen Saki told reporters Monday that the meeting would focus on US concerns about Russia’s military activity on the Ukrainian border, and that Biden would have the opportunity to discuss the issue with Putin and US support for him. Emphasize the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.
A White House spokesman said the meeting would also be an opportunity to discuss various issues in US-Russian relations, including strategic stability, cyberspace and regional issues. But Russia’s military activities on the border with Ukraine will be an important part of the talks.
Although US and Russian sources say the Ukraine crisis is at the forefront of Vladimir Putin and Joe Biden’s agenda, there are many other issues on the agenda, from climate change to the oil market.
Biden and Putin met on June 16 this year (June 26, 1400) in Geneva, Switzerland.
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