Putin ‘pleased’ with Biden talks, warns against sanctions: Kremlin
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin meets with local Russian officials in the Kremlin in Moscow, on December 30, 2021. – US President Joe Biden and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin emphasised the need for diplomatic solutions ahead of their latest phone call on December 29, 2021, aimed at defusing tensions surrounding the Ukraine conflict. The call, which will begin at 2030 GMT, also comes ahead of talks between representatives of the two rivals in Geneva in January, with Washington saying it expects to discuss the Ukraine conflict and Moscow insisting its security demands be contended with. (Photo by Mikhail Metzel / SPUTNIK / AFP)
MOSCOW, Russia (AFP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin was satisfied with his phone call with Joe Biden but warned the US leader against introducing major sanctions amid tensions over Ukraine, the Kremlin said.
Putin’s foreign policy adviser Yury Ushakov said the Kremlin was “pleased” overall with the talks, but said Putin warned Biden Moscow needed a concrete “result” from upcoming security talks and warned against introducing major sanctions. “This will be a colossal mistake. We hope this will not happen,” Ushakov told reporters in a conference call.