WASHINGTON (AFP): US President Joe Biden will hold a video call with European allies later Monday to discuss a common response to Russian military pressure around Ukraine, the White House said.
The call will be with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, Polish President Andrzej Duda, and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg.
The “secure video call” from the Situation Room in the White House was scheduled for 3:00 pm (2000 GMT).
The talks were described as “part of our close consultation and coordination with our transatlantic allies and partners in response to Russia’s military buildup on Ukraine’s borders,” the White House said.
Biden is trying to forge a united response between European allies to the intense military build-up of Russian forces around Ukraine. The Kremlin is demanding a guarantee that the former Soviet republic never be allowed to enter NATO, as well as other concessions by the United States in return for a decrease in tension.
