The week started with high-level meetings to discuss the Russia-Ukraine crisis.

Here, in Washington DC, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz met with U.S. President Joe Biden and tried to dispel fears that NATO countries were divided on how to deal with the threat.

Last Friday, in Beijing, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Chinese President Xi Jinping, during the start of the Winter Olympics. The two countries issued a statement opposing the expansion of NATO and demanded security guarantees in Europe.

On Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron held talks with Putin in Moscow. Putin thanked Macron for France’s role in dealing with the security issues in Europe. And this Tuesday, Macron went to Kyiv to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Philip Crowther has the details.

To discuss:

• Paul Hockenos is a journalist and author.
• Pavel Felgenhauer is a defense analyst and columnist for Novaya Gazeta.
• Einar Tangen is a current affairs commentator.
• Jack Midgley is Principal at Midgley & Company.

For more:

President Vladimir Putin of Russia met with President Emmanuel Macron of France on Monday, in an accelerating push for diplomacy amid mounting Western fears that Russia could attack neighboring Ukraine in the coming weeks. https://t.co/HBlrMld3QT pic.twitter.com/ecBThRs3sF

— The New York Times (@nytimes) February 7, 2022

#UPDATE Ukraine's presidency on Sunday insisted the chance of resolving soaring tensions with Russia through diplomacy remained greater than that of an attack, as the US warned Moscow was stepping up preparations for an invasion pic.twitter.com/ZbRlP9RXUW

— AFP News Agency (@AFP) February 6, 2022