US President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed in a telephone interview on Wednesday April 14 to ask Russia to cut troops on the Ukrainian border as the situation on the ground escalates
The aim is to allow “A de-escalation” of the situation, Angela Merkel’s spokesperson said in a statement. The White House also noted in a statement that “The leaders expressed their concern about the accumulation of Russian troops on the borders of Ukraine and in occupied Crimea, and reaffirmed their support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine”.
In the morning, German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer accused Russia of ” provocation “ in the Ukrainian case and indicated that the situation was being monitored ” with worry “. “We are going to do everything to ensure that things do not degenerate”, she added, greeting Kiev for her reaction so far “Measured”.
Biden proposes summit to Putin “in the near future”
Moscow has massed tens of thousands of soldiers on the borders of this former Soviet republic which aspires to join NATO. At the same time, violence has resumed since the beginning of the year in the conflict in eastern Ukraine between Kiev forces and pro-Russian separatists.
The defense ministers of the thirty NATO member countries discussed Wednesday during a videoconference meeting with the head of American diplomacy, Antony Blinken, who came especially to the Alliance headquarters in Brussels, the subject of tensions with Russia in Ukraine.
President Biden on Tuesday proposed to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin a summit in a third country ” in the near future “. Relations between Moscow and Washington are at an all-time low, weighed down by disagreements over a number of issues from Ukraine to Syria, accusations of electoral interference, espionage and cyber attacks.