(TheLibertyRevolution.com)- A summit between U.S. President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin has been floated as tensions escalate near the Russian-Ukraine border.
However, the Russian leader said this week that there were still no definite plans for that summit just yet. The president of France, Emmanuel Macron, had said over the weekend that the two world leaders had agreed in principle on a meeting. But, those plans apparently aren’t set in stone just yet.
While there was much optimism following Macron’s announcement over the weekend, there is still much work to do before peace is agreed upon. In fact, on Monday, Putin took things to the next level when he recognized the independence of two pro-Russian territories in eastern Ukraine, and then sent troops in to those territories on what he termed a “peacekeeping” mission.
That, obviously, angered Biden and many leaders from around the world. It may be enough to sour expectations that a summit between Putin and Biden will even happen.
When he talked about agreeing in principle to the summit with Putin, Biden said he would only meet with him if Russia didn’t invade Ukraine. The president said the summit would be off the table altogether if Russia ended up invading.
It’s uncertain at this point whether the actions Russia has already taken would be considered too much for Biden and his administration to still go through with the summit.
While details are still being worked out, Russia seems to be plowing ahead with preparations for a full-scale invasion of its neighbor.
In addition to declaring the two territories independent, Russia has been moving military personnel into other neighboring countries that are its allies.
On Sunday, Belarus announced that the Russian military would be extended its military exercises in their country. There are tens of thousands of Russian soldiers now in Belarus, the Biden administration estimates, as part of the roughly 190,000 troops that Russia has stationed in the region.
The United States already warned all Americans in Ukraine to leave the country as fast as they could, so they could stay away from a potential invasion. Other countries and companies are now doing the same.
Airlines Air France, KLM and Lufthansa have all canceled flights into Ukraine’s capital, Kyiv, in anticipation of the possibility of more military action.
While Ukraine has called for the world to impose sanctions on Russia to stop them from advancing further, that has not happened yet. Many world leaders have said that imposing sanctions before Russia takes any action would be irresponsible and set a dangerous precedent for the future.
While tensions are escalating, there is still hope that a deal for diplomacy can be reached. Macron is hoping that official details on a summit can be hammered out later this week when U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to meet with Sergei Lavrov, the foreign minister of Russia.
That could be the last time that the two world powers have a chance to meet and iron out issues before Russia initiates an all-out war.
