U.S. President Joe Biden and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin will speak on Saturday as the United States and other Western nations warned a war in Ukraine could ignite at any moment.
Washington ordered some embassy staff to leave Ukraine on Saturday, following its call this week for citizens to leave the country as soon as possible.
Putin requested the telephone call between the leaders to take place on Monday, a White House official said, but Biden wanted to conduct it sooner as Washington detailed increasingly vivid accounts of a possible attack on Ukraine.
Australia, New Zealand, Germany and the Netherlands on Saturday joined countries urging their citizens to leave Ukraine. Washington said on Friday that a Russian invasion, including a possible air assault, could occur anytime.
Moscow has repeatedly disputed Washington’s version of events, saying it has massed more than 100,000 troops near the Ukrainian border to maintain its own security against aggression by NATO allies.
Russia, which has accused Western nations of spreading lies, meanwhile said on Saturday it had decided to “optimise” its diplomatic staff numbers in Ukraine, fearing “provocations” by Kyiv or another party.
Moscow did not say whether that meant a reduction in staff numbers but said the embassy and consulates in Ukraine continued to perform their key functions.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Washington would impose swift economic sanctions if Moscow invades.
“I continue to hope that he will not choose the path of renewed aggression and he’ll chose the path of diplomacy and dialogue,” Blinken told reporters after a meeting with Pacific leaders in Fiji. “But if he doesn’t, we’re prepared.”
In a phone call later with Blinken, Russia’s top diplomat Sergei Lavrov accused the United States and its allies of waging a “propaganda campaign” about Russian aggression towards Ukraine, the Russian foreign ministry said.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on Saturday that the crisis between Russia and Ukraine was escalating, but Germany was making all efforts to find a diplomatic solution.
