The French President and the German Chancellor will head to Moscow and Kiev in the coming weeks, adding to diplomatic efforts to try to deter Russian President Vladimir Putin from launching an invasion of Ukraine and find a way out of the growing tensions.
France’s Emmanuel Macron is scheduled to visit Moscow on Monday and Kiev on Tuesday, while Germany’s Olaf Scholz will travel to Kiev on February 14 and Moscow the next day. The visits come as China has backed Russia’s demand that NATO be precluded from expanding to Ukraine, and after the U.S. accused the Kremlin on Thursday of an elaborate plot to fabricate an attack by Ukrainian forces that Russia could use as a pretext to take military action. The U.S. has not provided detailed information backing up the claims, which Moscow has denied.
While France is a major player in NATO and is moving troops to Romania as part of the alliance’s preparation for possible Russian action, Mr. Macron has also been actively pushing for dialogue with Mr. Putin and has spoken to him several times in recent weeks. The two will hold a one-on-one meeting Monday, Mr. Macron’s office said Friday.
Germany has emphasised the importance of various diplomatic formats in tackling the tensions and has refused to send weapons to Ukraine, irking some allies. Mr. Scholz has faced criticism at home lately for keeping a low public profile in the crisis.
