The Russian government issued a terse statement after the call. “Talks between Vladimir Putin and President of the United States Joseph Biden took place via videoconference,” it said.
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US officials said before the conference that Biden would tell Putin that Russia and its banks could be hit with the toughest sanctions yet if it attacked Ukraine.
Sanctions,which one source said could target Russia’s biggest banks and Moscow’s ability to convert roubles into dollars and other currencies,are designed to dissuade Putin fromusing tens of thousands of troops massed near the Ukrainian border to attack its southern neighbour.
Moscow has voiced rising vexation over Western military aid to Ukraine,a fellow former Soviet republic that has tilted towards the West since a popular revolt toppled a pro-Russian president in 2014,and what it calls creeping NATO expansion.
Moscow has likewise questioned Ukrainian intentions and said it wanted guarantees that Kyiv would not use force to try to retake territory lost in 2014 to Russia-backed separatists,a scenario Ukraine has ruled out.
“We’re looking for good,predictable relations with the United States. Russia has never intended to attack anyone,but we have our concerns and we have our red lines,” said Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov before the talks.
Washington has accused Russia of massing troops near the border with Ukraine to intimidate an aspiring NATO member,suggesting it could be a repeat of Moscow’s 2014 playbook,when it seized the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea from Ukraine.
For Moscow,the growing NATO embrace of a neighbouring former Soviet republic - and what it sees as the nightmare possibility of alliance missiles in Ukraine targeted against Russia - is a “red line” it will not allow to be crossed.
Leaders from Britain,the United States,France,Germany and Italy were to hold a call following the Biden-Putin talks,the White House and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s office said.
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The same allies spoke on Monday and “agreed to stay in close touch on a coordinated and comprehensive approach in response to Russia’s military build-up on Ukraine’s borders,” the White House said.
Calling for everyone to keep “a cool head”,Peskov said it was vital that Putin and Biden speak given what he called the extraordinary escalation of tensions in Europe.
The Russian rouble weakened slightly on Tuesday,with some market analysts predicting the talks would de-escalate tensions and others saying that the US sanctions threat eroded hopes of finding common ground.
Should Russia invade Ukraine,targetingPutin’s inner circle has been discussed but no decision made,a US source said. Sanctions against Russia’s biggest banks and curbing the conversion of roubles into dollars and other currencies were also being considered,another source said.
The United States has already evaluated the possibility of restricting investors’ ability to buy Russian debt on the secondary market,a measure that even if taken only by Washington was seen as having a severe impact on Russia’s government,according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter.
Washington could also target the Russian Direct Investment Fund.
CNN reported sanctions could include disconnecting Russia from the SWIFT international payment system used by banks around the world,an extreme step that would likely require coordination with allies.
German Gref,the chief executive of Russia’s top bank Sberbank,on Tuesday called that idea “nonsense” and “impossible to execute”.
The White House declined to comment.
The European Union’s chief executive,Ursula von der Leyen,offered Ukraine the EU’s full support on Tuesday and said that the bloc would consider more sanctions on Russia.
Ukraine and NATO powers accuse Russia of building up troops near the border,sparking fears of a possible attack. Moscow denies any such plan and accuses Kyiv of massing its own forces in its east,where Russian-backed separatists control a large part of Ukrainian territory.
The United States has urged both countries to return to a set of largely unimplemented agreements signed in 2014 and 2015 which were designed to end the war in eastern Ukraine.
Putin has said he wants legally binding guarantees NATO will not expand further eastwards and a pledge that certain types of weapons will not be deployed in countries close to Russia,including Ukraine.
Nord Stream 2
US officials have told members of Congress they have an understanding with Germany about shutting down the Nord Stream 2 pipeline if Russia invades Ukraine,a senior congressional aide told Reuters on Tuesday.
The aide said US officials told Congress they have been in contact with their German counterparts in the event of an invasion,given the massing of Russian troops on the border with Ukraine.
US officials say they have received assurances from Germany the pipeline would be turned off,the aide said. But it was unclear if the two sides had agreed on a definition of invasion,the aide said.
A European diplomat told Reuters US officials had made it clear to allies that they would act to sanction the pipeline in the event of an invasion,which could make any German action a moot point.
“If the US imposes[additional] sanctions,it’s an academic point,because no one will be able to do business with Nord Stream 2 for fear of running afoul of US sanctions.”
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German officials told reporters on Tuesday that there was still a process to complete before the pipeline would even start operations.
Biden has long opposed the Russian-German pipeline. The US State Department has sanctioned Russian entities related to it,but not the company behind it,as it has tried to rebuild ties with Germany that deteriorated under Donald Trump’s administration.
Reuters