Chris Lange, FISM News

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President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke for approximately two hours on Tuesday during a secure video call amid escalating tensions over Moscow’s military build-up at the Ukrainian border.

During the meeting Biden voiced “deep concerns” shared by the U.S. and its European allies concerning Russia’s recent amassing of military troops at Ukraine’s border. Biden is also said to have “made [it] clear that the U.S. and [its] allies would respond with strong economic and other measures in the event of military escalation,” according to a White House readout of the call. The president also reaffirmed his “support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and called for de-escalation and a return to diplomacy.”

The White House said Biden also conveyed to Putin that the United States is prepared to exact economic retaliation should Russia invade Ukraine, leading some to speculate that he may move to block Russia from the SWIFT international banking system. According to a Fox News report, the European Parliament in April signed a nonbinding resolution that would cut Russia off from the major banking network should it invade Ukraine. Unnamed sources told Fox that Russia would consider any such move by the United States to be an act of “economic warfare.”

According to Reuters, Putin responded to Biden’s warning  by demanding legally-binding guarantees against an eastward expansion of NATO in their continued efforts to “develop Ukrainian territory.” The Kremlin continued to deny any intention to attack Ukraine, claiming the troop buildup at its southern border is defensive.

National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said that Biden was “direct and straightforward” with Putin in a White House briefing following the call. According to Sullivan, Biden made it clear to the Putin that if a dipolmatic resolve could not be met that the US was set ready to respond with “specific robust clear responses.” He also said that any sanctions would be much more severe than those imposed upon them in 2014.

The Biden administration is prepared to “provide additional defensive material to the Ukrainians above and beyond that which we are already providing” should Russia further invade Ukraine, according to Sullivan, who added, “we would fortify our NATO allies on the eastern flank with additional capabilities in response to such an escalation.” 

Sullivan said Biden was “crystal clear about where the United States stands on all of these issues,” adding that the president “welcomed” the opportunity to engage “clearly and directly” with Putin. 

The call between Biden and Putin concluded with an agreement that their respective teams will follow up on the items discussed.

Following the call, Biden debriefed leaders in France, Germany, the UK and Italy. The president also plans to confer with leaders of both houses of Congress in the coming days in regards to the call. Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky are scheduled to talk on Thursday.