A feverish round of diplomatic talks took place on Saturday after the US warned of an imminent Russian attack on Ukraine – a claim Moscow dismissed as propaganda.
Presidents Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin were speaking via telephone just hours after Putin spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron.
An anti-war rally in Kyiv on Saturday as US President Joe Biden and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin spoke by phone.Credit:Getty Images
A spokesperson for Macron said the Russian President had said nothing during their 90-minute call to suggest Putin was moving plans for an invasion forward.
“We are nevertheless extremely vigilant and alert to the Russian [military] posture in order to avoid the worst,” the spokesperson for Macron said.
France immediately changed its guidance to nationals, recommending they avoid all travel to Ukraine. Australia, the US, the UK, New Zealand and a host of other countries have advised nationals to leave Ukraine as soon as possible.
Separately, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during a 35-minute call with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, stressed that the path for diplomatic engagement remained open.
Moscow has repeatedly denied reports of a planned invasion, despite a buildup of almost 130,000 troops on the Ukraine border, including in neighbouring Belarus, a Russian ally to the north.
On Friday, the White House said there was a “credible prospect” of Russian military action before the end of the Winter Olympics in Beijing on February 20.
“Our view is that we do not believe he has made any kind of final decision, or we don’t know that he has made any final decision,” US national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters, referring to Putin.
The flurry of calls between Paris, Moscow and Washington on Saturday coincided with a rally in Kyiv that saw thousands of Ukrainians turn out to protest against any Russian action.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has told people not to panic, pushing back against what he said was a glut of bleak war predictions in the media.
Even so, Ukrainians filed through the centre of Kyiv in a column, chanting “Glory to Ukraine” and carrying Ukrainian flags and banners with slogans like “Ukrainians will resist” and “Invaders must die”.
Zelensky has admitted a Russian attack could happen at any time, but he has pushed back against what he called excessive amounts of information about a major looming war.
“The best friend of our enemies is panic in our country. And all this information is just provoking panic and can’t help us,” he said. “I can’t agree or disagree with what hasn’t happened yet. So far, there is no full-scale war in Ukraine.
“We have to be ready each day. It did not begin yesterday. It began in 2014, so, we are ready and this is why we are here,” he said in reference to Russia’s annexation of Crimea and Moscow’s support of anti-Kyiv separatists in the east.
In a separate statement, the head of Ukrainian armed forces Valery Zaluzhny and Defence Minister Oleksii Reznikov said Russia would not Kyiv, Odessa, Kharkiv or any other Ukrainian city.
“We have strengthened the defence of Kyiv. We have gone through the war and due preparation. Therefore, we are ready to meet enemies and not with flowers, but with Stingers, Javelins and NLAW. Welcome to hell!” Zaluzhny said, referring to anti-rocket and anti-aircraft weapons received from the West.
The military says Ukrainian intelligence and the army have control of the situation on the borders and Kyiv is co-ordinating its actions with allies.
Zelensky has consistently voiced his frustration with dire assessments of a war that are taking their toll on the economy and piling pressure on the national currency.
Bloomberg, Reuters
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