Diplomatic moves and exchanges of visits continue in Washington, Moscow and Kiev in search of a solution to the Ukrainian crisis, as French President Emmanuel Macron visits the capital, Kiev, on Tuesday to meet with his counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky, after he presented in Moscow his proposals to defuse the crisis, while Russia announced that it was ready for "compromises", while Washington reiterated its assertion Russia will pay a heavy price if it invades its neighbor.

Macron will also meet in Berlin with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who has just returned from Washington, as part of a series of European diplomatic efforts over the current and next two weeks.

The French presidency stated that Macron's proposals include a commitment not to take new military initiatives from both sides, and to start a dialogue that deals especially with the Russian military deployment, peace negotiations on the conflict in Ukraine and the beginning of a strategic dialogue.


Russian pledge?

After talks between the Russian President and Macron, a French official said that Vladimir Putin had pledged not to conduct new military exercises near Ukraine for the time being, in preparation for a possible calm.

The French official added that the Russian president also agreed to withdraw the forces participating in military exercises in Belarus near the Ukrainian border as soon as those exercises ended.

Macron also confirmed that talks with Putin concluded that there was no further escalation of the situation in Ukraine.

Putin himself said nothing of the kind when speaking to the media after six hours of talks with Macron at the Kremlin on Monday.

During his statements to reporters, the French official requested anonymity.


The Kremlin denies

The Kremlin, for its part, denied the veracity of information that Putin and Macron had reached a deal on Ukraine.

The Kremlin said that the issue of security guarantees remains open, and Moscow does not see the West's desire to take Russia's concerns into account.

He added that de-escalation is very necessary now and the tension is increasing due to the supply of arms to Ukraine.

But he said that the Russian forces will return to their places of concentration after participating in joint military exercises in Belarus.

The Kremlin added that Putin did not give Macron any specific date for the departure of Russian forces from Belarus after the end of the exercises.


"Settlements"

For his part, Putin announced after his talks with Macron that Moscow will do everything in its power to "reach settlements" in the crisis with the West over Ukraine.

Putin stated that there would be no "winners" in the event of a war on the European continent.

He also stressed that NATO and the United States have ignored Moscow's demand for security guarantees that include the non-expansion of the alliance, pointing out that his country will put pressure on them to make a firm commitment.

"I don't think our dialogue is over," he said, adding that Russia would soon send a response to NATO and Washington.

He also stressed that the Ukrainian authorities must respect the Western-brokered Minsk agreements on the military conflict with the country's separatists, saying, "I simply believe that there is no alternative."

But he did not mention his projects regarding the tens of thousands of Russian soldiers deployed on the borders of Ukraine.


maneuvers

Meanwhile, the Russian Interfax news agency quoted the Russian Defense Ministry as saying today, Tuesday, that six Russian warships are heading to the Black Sea from the Mediterranean to participate in naval exercises in what it described as a pre-planned move regarding military activities.

Russia announced last month that its navies would conduct a comprehensive set of exercises involving all of its fleets in January and February from the Pacific to the Atlantic, in the latest show of force in an escalation of military activity during a standoff with the West.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov said late Monday that the Ukrainian army will carry out military exercises from February 10 to February 20, in response to Russian military maneuvers in Belarus near Ukraine's northern border.

Reznikov told a local TV channel that Ukrainian soldiers are constantly conducting various exercises, and from February 10 they will start carrying out maneuvers using Bayraktar drones, Javelin and NLAW anti-aircraft missiles provided by the Russian Federation. their foreign partners.


Fatal error

US President Joe Biden said that Russian President Vladimir Putin should realize that it would be a huge mistake for him if he headed towards Ukraine, and that he would pay a heavy price, while praising

Biden made it clear at a press conference at the White House after his meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Schulz, that the United States is ready to continue important good-faith talks with Russia, but if Russia makes a decision to invade Ukraine again, it and NATO are ready for that.

He explained that his meeting at the White House with Schultz was very productive, and that discussions on "deterring Russian threats against Ukraine" were high on the agenda.

Biden emphasized that Germany, the United States and its allies and partners are working closely together to achieve diplomatic solutions to this situation, noting that diplomacy is the "best way" to move forward for all parties.

For his part, Schultz said there was a "heavy price" for Russia to pay if it invaded Ukraine.

"We are in a very difficult situation, there is a military threat to Ukraine, we cannot remain silent about it," the German chancellor added.


Turkish role

Meanwhile, Turkish presidential spokesman Ibrahim Kalin stressed the importance of dialogue and negotiation between the leaders of Russia, Vladimir Putin, and Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, to resolve the crisis between the two countries.

In an interview with a private Turkish channel on Monday evening, Kalin expressed his belief that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will play an important role in convening a summit between the Russian and Ukrainian presidents.

He explained that Erdogan's visit to Ukraine last week came at a very sensitive stage, and was welcomed by Kiev and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

He added that Ukrainians are expressing their dissatisfaction with Western statements that Russia is about to occupy Kiev.

"Putin's main goal is not to storm and occupy Ukraine, but to start new negotiations with the West on many issues," he added.