It was announced on Sunday night that President Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin have agreed to "the principle" of a summit, that is if Putin does not invade Ukraine first.
President Biden spoke with President Emmanuel Macron of France today. They discussed ongoing diplomacy and deterrence efforts in response to Russia’s military buildup on the borders of Ukraine.
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 20, 2022
The White House tweeted that same evening that the president spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron, who had also spoken with Putin. A statement from White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki posted to the White House website confirmed that such a meeting between Biden and Putin has been agreed to, if the conditions are met. The statement also referenced a meeting to take place in Europe on Thursday between Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov
"As the President has repeatedly made clear, we are committed to pursuing diplomacy until the moment an invasion begins. Secretary Blinken and Foreign Minister Lavrov are scheduled to meet later this week in Europe, provided Russia does not proceed with military action. President Biden accepted in principle a meeting with President Putin following that engagement, again, if an invasion hasn’t happened. We are always ready for diplomacy. We are also ready to impose swift and severe consequences should Russia instead choose war. And currently, Russia appears to be continuing preparations for a full-scale assault on Ukraine very soon," the statement read.
The statement begins with the administration's narrative that they "are committed to pursuing diplomacy," which it later stresses they "are always ready for." The statement also makes reference to, with added emphasis, that they "are also ready to impose swift and severe consequences should Russia instead choose war."
As I've been covering, including earlier on Sunday, the Biden administration has insisted that they will not impose sanctions on Russia yet, despite requests from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that they do so. The explanation the administration has given is that they don't want the sanctions to lose their deterrent effect, though that hasn't stopped the pushback and criticism, including and especially from Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX).
During his appearance on "Fox News Sunday," Cruz blasted this administration's handling of this foreign policy issue, and others, and said that "Joe Biden becoming president is the best thing that ever happened, tragically, for Vladimir Putin."
The urgency for a summit and seeking to maintain a diplomatic solution came about as reports have also shared that Russian commanders have received orders to invade Ukraine.
Two US officials tell me the reporting below is accurate: that the US has intelligence that Russian troops were given orders to proceed with an invasion. The intelligence led to Biden’s statement Friday. Washington Post and NYT also reporting. https://t.co/zsyM4ZbCng
— Jennifer Griffin (@JenGriffinFNC) February 20, 2022
"The U.S. has intelligence that Russian commanders have received orders to proceed with an invasion of Ukraine, Fox News has confirmed," an update from Fox News read on Sunday. "Commanders on the ground have made specific plans for how they would maneuver in their sectors of the battlefield."