United States President Joe Biden has agreed "in principle" to meet with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in what may be a last-ditch diplomatic attempt at resolving Ukraine's tensions and a possible way to avert a Russian military attack.
According to White House and French President Emmanuel Macron's office statements, Biden stated that the meeting can only happen if Russia does not attack Ukraine.
The conference will focus on security and strategic stability in Europe, the French presidential office said in a statement. It will be followed by a second summit with key stakeholders.
Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, said in an email that the summit will follow U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's scheduled meeting later this week in Europe.
The announcement came as Biden called a National Security Council meeting on Sunday, in the wake of warnings from U.S. officials that Putin was sowing disinformation in order to blame Ukraine in the event that Russian forces invaded the nation.
The possibility of a one-on-one meeting between Biden and Putin comes as the White House cautions that Russia might invade Ukraine "at any time."
Moscow has been beefing up its military presence on the northern and eastern frontiers of its former Soviet neighbor for weeks, with current estimates putting Russia's force at around 190,000.
The Kremlin made no quick confirmation. Moscow continues to deny plans to invade Ukraine and claims to be withdrawing soldiers from border areas, while the US disputes this.
An hour-long phone chat between Biden and Putin earlier this month fell short of resolving tensions, leaving both parties at a standstill.
Biden warned of "serious consequences," while Putin charged that the U.S. has failed to provide him with the security assurances he requires to back down.
Previously, Moscow said Putin would be willing to speak with or meet with him to address his security requests.
For the better part of the previous several weeks, the possibility of a Russian attack has kept global markets on edge, with oil prices rising and equities unsettled.
The S&P 500 index, which monitors the performance of the top corporations in the United States, is down 3.7% in February, while the Nasdaq Composite is down 4.7 percent. The price of West Texas crude oil futures has increased by 4.1% in the last month.
U.S. market futures began to rise, while Asian stocks pared losses, as demand for safe-haven assets such as sovereign bonds and gold dwindled.
