Putin has said nothing to suggest he’s preparing invasion

PARIS (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said nothing during a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday that he indicated he was preparing to invade Ukraine, an official in the French presidency said.

The two leaders spoke at a time of high tension over Russia’s massing of troops near the Ukrainian border, with Washington saying on Friday that Moscow could invade at any moment. Russia has denied it plans to invade.

“We see no indication in what President Putin says he is going to go on the offensive,” the official told reporters after Macron and Putin spoke on the phone for nearly 90 minutes.

“We are nevertheless extremely vigilant and alert to the Russian (military) posture in order to avoid the worst.”

Separately, the Kremlin said Putin had highlighted during the call with Macron a “lack of a substantive response from the United States and NATO to well-known Russian initiatives.” This referred to a series of Russian security demands, including that it bar Ukraine from ever joining NATO.

Putin and Macron also discussed the situation related to “provocative speculations” around an allegedly planned Russian invasion, the Kremlin said.

The Elysee official said France would recommend that French nationals avoid trips to Ukraine and preparations would be made for embassy staff and their families to leave the country if they wanted, the official said.

The French ambassador would review the situation for the some 1,000 French nationals in the country, many of whom hold both French and Ukrainian citizenship, the official said. The United States and many other countries have urged citizens to leave Ukraine amid fears of an invasion.

Macron visited Moscow earlier this week and then and in their call on Saturday the two discussed ways to move forward on the implementation of the Minsk Agreements on achieving peace in eastern Ukraine, as well as conditions for security and stability in Europe, the Elysee said separately in a statement.

Macron was also due to speak on Saturday with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.