Live: Talk of Putin-Biden summit on Ukraine “premature”, says Kremlin
The Kremlin said on Monday that there were no concrete plans for a summit on Ukraine between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Joe Biden, but that a call or meeting could take place at any moment.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that tensions were rising over Ukraine, but diplomatic contacts had been active. He said Putin would deliver an imminent speech at the Russian Security Council. Follow France 24 for live updates.
The Kremlin says there are no ‘concrete plans’ for a summit meeting The Kremlin said, Monday, that it is premature to organize a summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Joe Biden, after Paris announced the possibility of a meeting to calm tensions over Ukraine.
“It is premature to talk about any specific plans to organize any kind of summit,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, adding that no “concrete plans” had been made for a meeting.
The Belarusian Ministry of Defense said, on Monday, that the Russian forces will return to the bases when an “objective need” arises.
Western powers are concerned about the reinforcement of Russian forces near Ukraine, and Belarus on Sunday will extend joint military exercises with Russia in Belarus.
On Monday, the ministry said the troop withdrawal would depend to a large extent on the withdrawal of NATO forces near the borders of Belarus and Russia.
“The fluctuations in the Donbas River could be the spark that could push this situation into conflict.”
Stop manipulating people’s lives in eastern Ukraine, Germany tells Russia: German Foreign Minister Annallina Berbück accused Russia on Monday of playing an “irresponsible” game with the civilian population of eastern Ukraine and urged it to return to the negotiating table.
Intermittent shelling has intensified across the line between Ukrainian government forces and pro-Russian separatists in the east since Thursday.
“I urgently appeal to the Russian government to the Russian president: Do not play with people’s lives,” Barbock told reporters after arriving for a meeting of European Union foreign ministers in Brussels.
“What we’ve seen over the past 72 hours in terms of the attacks, really disturbing violent conflicts,” she said. “The responsibility lies with the Russian government and for this I urgently call on the Russian government: come back to the negotiating table. It’s in your hands.”
Russia has lists of Ukrainians “to be killed or sent to camps”, the United States is warning the United Nations and the United States has warned the United Nations that it has information that Russia has lists of Ukrainians “to be killed or sent to camps” in the event of an invasion, according to For a letter sent to the High Commissioner for Human Rights and obtained by AFP on Sunday.
The letter, which came as Washington warned of an imminent invasion by Russian forces massed near the Ukrainian border, says the United States is “extremely concerned” and warns of a potential “human rights catastrophe”.
The letter said the United States had “credible information indicating that Russian forces are working to create lists of Ukrainians who have been identified for killing or sent to camps in the wake of the military occupation.”
“We also have credible information that Russian forces will likely use lethal measures to disperse peaceful protests or counter peaceful exercises of perceived resistance from the civilian population,” says the letter to UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet.
(France 24 with Agence France-Presse and Reuters)
