Russian President Vladimir Putin has achieved one goal: the talks he calls for with the United States and NATO on security guarantees for Russia will take place in January.
If this would prevent an attack by the armed forces that Putin deployed on the border with Ukraine, then that would be good.
The danger of an escalation is of course not averted, because Putin does not want a long discussion process, but demands immediate results. But there can be no such thing. Much of the Russian demands cannot be met - and that should be clear to the Kremlin. Because they mean that the West should add Ukraine to a Russian sphere of influence and that NATO gives up the promise of protection for its Eastern European members.
What is worth talking about is the revival of an arms control that deserves the name.
But such negotiations take a long time because innumerable technical details have to be clarified.
At the same time, Moscow is continuing to work on propaganda preparations for war.
Not only does the Kremlin refuse to give Ukraine any guarantees of security.
Putin himself repeated the myth of an impending Ukrainian attack on Thursday - the potential justification for military intervention.