French President Emmanuel Macron and US President Joe Biden agreed to coordinate their response to Russia's military buildup on the Ukrainian border, after Macron said he might visit Russia to find a diplomatic solution to the standoff.
In a call between the two leaders Wednesday, Macron and Biden reviewed "ongoing coordination on both diplomacy and preparations to impose swift and severe economic costs on Russia should it further invade Ukraine," according to a statement.
The allies agreed to stay in “close touch” in consultation with Nato and other European Union members on a “coordinated and comprehensive approach” to support “Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity".
Russia has deployed more than 100,000 heavily armed troops around Ukraine, raising Western fears that it is planning to invade the pro-EU former Soviet republic, which has ambitions of joining Western institutions, including Nato.
Russia denies it plans to invade and says the troops are there because of threats from the US and its allies.
Macron could visit Russia
Earlier Wednesday Macron said he would also keep up contacts with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky, and could visit Russia to seek a diplomatic solution.
"The most important thing is to firstly continue the European coordination and continue the exchanges with both President Putin and President Zelensky," he told reporters Wednesday.
"Depending on the progress of our discussions made in the coming hours, I do not exclude any initiative or journey.”
Macron said this week that Russia was behaving as a "power of disequilibrium" in the region, but he also indicated he was open to dialogue with Moscow.
He has maintained that Europe must keep channels open to talk with Russia, and has held repeated talks with Putin by telephone over the last days.
Another call is expected Thursday evening.
France supporting Romania
France, meanwhile, will refine plans to send troops to Romania, which has a 600-kilometre border with Ukraine, as part of a future Nato mission.
Romania has raised security concerns that a conflict in Ukraine could spill over the border.
Speaking to the Romanian parliament on Wednesday to mark the 15 years since it joined the EU, France's Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said Paris wanted to show its solidarity, and underscore the EU's unity.
"France is ready to commit to new Nato reassurance measures for Romania," Le Drian said. "We are proud to stand with you when the security situation is worsening at your borders, which are also our borders."
France, which is leading Nato's Very High Readiness Joint Task Force (VJTF) in 2022, has offered to be the lead nation of a mission in Romania, similar to those in the Baltics, with one country coordinating land, sea and maritime assets.
The mission could involve up to 1,000 troops from various countries. Nato has a multinational land force of up to 4,000 troops in Romania.
Le Drian will hold talks in Bucharest on Thursday with nine ministers from Eastern Europe and the Baltic states, including Poland, the Czech Republic, and Estonia, to discuss the crisis.
The US, which has soldiers stationed at separate bases in Romania and in Bulgaria, said Wednesday it would send nearly 3,000 extra troops to Poland and Romania to reinforce Eastern European Nato allies.
(with wires)
