Biden, Putin exchange warnings during phone call over Ukraine

Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned his US counterpart Joe Biden that imposing new sanctions over Ukraine could lead to a complete breakdown in relations. In a phone call on Thursday, the Russian president said such sanctions would be a colossal mistake. Biden, meanwhile, told Putin that the US and its allies would respond decisively to any invasion of Ukraine. The call, requested by Russia, was their second such conversation this month and lasted for almost an hour. It marked the latest effort to defuse tensions over Ukraine's eastern border with Russia, where Ukrainian officials say more than 1 lakh Russian troops have been sent.

White House statemnet said that President Biden urged Russia to de-escalate tensions with Ukraine. He made clear that the United States and its allies and partners will respond decisively if Russia further invades Ukraine. President Biden also expressed support for diplomacy, starting early next year with the bilateral Strategic Stability Dialogue, at NATO through the NATO-Russia Council, and at the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. President Biden reiterated that substantive progress in these dialogues can occur only in an environment of de-escalation rather than escalation.

The 50-minute phone call did not yield any major breakthroughs, US and Russian officials said afterward, but did establish the tenor for upcoming in-person diplomatic talks between the two sides. "A lot of such mistakes have been made over the past 30 years," Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov said, "and it is advisable not to make such mistakes again."  Russia, however, denies it is planning to invade the country and says the troops are there for exercises. It says it is entitled to move its troops freely on its own soil.Although the two sides exchanged warnings during the call, Russian foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov told reporters shortly after that Putin was pleased with the conversation. He added that it had created a good backdrop for future talks.