Alexis Guilleux (correspondent in Washington), edited by Juline Garnier 10:09 a.m., March 24, 2022
After a month of war in Ukraine, a diplomatic marathon has taken place in an attempt to restore peace.
The Europeans and their allies are organizing an exceptional summit of the European Union, the G7 and NATO this Thursday.
US President Joe Biden, who arrived in Brussels on Wednesday, wants to take stock of the cohesion of Western forces.
Unity and consultation.
These are the two words that Joe Biden has been repeating since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
The White House is playing the collective card so as not to offer Vladimir Putin the opportunity of a direct face to face with Washington.
A month after the start of the war, the American president wants to ensure the cohesion of his allies at the G7 and NATO summit on Thursday.
The Americans also want to forget the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan and criticism of unilateral decisions.
In terms of sanctions, it is above all a question of strengthening the existing measures and ensuring that Russia cannot circumvent them.
These are mainly financial for the moment, with a freezing of the assets of around twenty Russian oligarchs and the blocking of the Swift platform for certain banks.
The allies should raise the issue of hydrocarbons
Joe Biden is also expected to announce sweeping new sanctions against Russian MPs today, as promised by the White House.
Discussions between allies will also focus on the issue of hydrocarbons.
Washington has stopped imports from Russia, but admits that on this point, its dependence is much less strong than that of European countries.
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Finally, on the military level, NATO has announced the deployment of four new battle groups on its eastern flank.
However, the United States rules out any possibility of an intervention in Ukraine.
Joe Biden, who also rejects this idea of direct engagement on the ground, will be in Poland on Friday and Saturday.
A visit of the order of the symbol to show once again that Vladimir Putin has not succeeded in dividing the West.