Biden to talk to European allies after video call with Putin

By Servet Gunerigok

WASHINGTON (AA) - US President Joe Biden will talk to European allies later Tuesday, following a video call with his Russian counterpart, according to the White House.

The call with Vladimir Putin has lasted more than two hours thus far, during which the two leaders are expecting to discuss tensions regarding Ukraine, NATO's advance to the Russian borders, among others.

Biden will convene a call with French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

"On their call yesterday, the leaders agreed to stay in close touch on a coordinated and comprehensive approach in response to Russia’s military build-up on Ukraine’s borders," said the White House.

On Monday, the leaders discussed their shared concern about the Russian military build-up on Ukraine’s borders and Russia’s increasingly harsh rhetoric.

"They called on Russia to de-escalate tensions and agreed that diplomacy, especially through the Normandy Format, is the only way forward to resolve the conflict in Donbas through the implementation of the Minsk Agreements," the White House said in a statement.