Macron, Putin look for solution

Leaders meet to seek way forward as tension increases along Ukraine border

The Kremlin has said French assertions that Russian President Vladimir Putin promised not to carry out "new military initiatives" near Ukraine during talks with French President Emmanuel Macron in Moscow on Monday were "not right".

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia and France had not yet been able to make a deal but that the meeting was a basis for further discussions.

According to a French source, quoted by the Reuters news agency, the Russian leader is willing to move toward de-escalating the crisis and also agreed to withdraw thousands of Russian troops from Belarus where they are taking part in military exercises.

However, Putin did not mention such concessions in a joint news conference after the summit at the Kremlin on Monday, although he did say that Moscow would seek a compromise to solve the crisis.

"As far as we are concerned, we will do everything to find compromises that suit everyone," Putin said, adding that there would be "no winners" if there was a military conflict.

This was Putin's first summit with a Western leader since Russia began building up troops close to the border with Ukraine, the BBC noted.

Russia has said its maneuvers have been driven by the eastward expansion of NATO and the possible inclusion of Ukraine into the United States-led alliance.

Putin emphasized that NATO and the United States had disregarded Moscow's demand of security guarantees including NATO's non-expansion, and said Russia would continue pushing for commitment on this.

Putin said the two leaders would talk again after Macron had visited Kyiv on Tuesday to meet with Ukraine's leadership.

Macron told reporters in Moscow that the days ahead would "require intensive discussions which we will pursue together". He said the aim was to build "concrete security guarantees" for all the states in the region.

The Russian leader said some of Macron's proposals "could form the basis of further joint steps".

Sun Zhuangzhi, director of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' Institute of Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies, said Macron's visit had a positive influence to some extent on easing the tension.

"France, which holds the Council of the European Union presidency, has made efforts in heading off conflicts in the Ukraine crisis, and it plays a positive role in easing the tensions as a mediator," said Sun.

The geopolitical tensions in Ukraine have also opened a fissure within NATO and in the US, said the researcher, adding that European countries, led by France and Germany, have been trying to solve the problem in a way different from the US.

Despite the optimistic signals between Paris and Moscow, Sun cautioned that it is not realistic to count on a single meeting to address the geopolitical problem.

"A decisive shift has yet to come as relations between Russia and NATO are getting more complicated and mistrust between Washington and the Kremlin is growing," he said. "The solution to the crisis will depend on the outcome of future negotiations and interactions between Washington and Moscow."

In another development, the United Kingdom and Poland have said they "stand side by side" as fears grow about a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine, a country that borders Poland.

The UK's defense secretary, Ben Wallace, confirmed a bilateral agreement on Monday that approved a further 350 British troops will be sent to Poland. The bilateral arrangement means the deployment takes place outside the structure of the NATO military alliance.

Last week, the United States announced it would send 1,700 paratroop reinforcements into Poland.

Zhao Ruinan in Beijing and agencies contributed to this story.