Joe Biden, Vladimir Putin start video conference amid heightened tensions over Ukraine

US President Joe Biden has started a 'secure' virtual call with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday where the two are expected to discuss a range of topics surrounding the bilateral issues including Ukraine, Iran, and NATO's eastward expansion. 

The talks are not to be broadcast live and Kremlin had previously said that Putin did not plan on making any statements following the talks. Additionally, White House press secretary Jen Psaki had also said that she would brief the media at least four hours after the beginning of the Putin-Biden meeting. The talks between both the leaders came amid heightened tensions between US-Russia especially as officials alerted that Moscow is planning an invasion into Ukraine. It is also reported that Biden would warn Putin over Russia's possible invasion into Ukraine.

Earlier on Tuesday, former US President Donald Trump had criticised the Biden-Putin virtual summit and termed it an 'unfair match' for the US. Sputnik quoted Trump as saying during the interview with the Newsmax channel, "Now I see that Joe Biden is proceeding to be discussing to Putin, and that's not a fair match ... That wouldn't have been a fair match in prime time. This is not a fair match for our country."

Kremlin said Biden-Putin will discuss 'lamentable' ties

Meanwhile, on the eve of US President Joe Biden’s call with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, Kremlin had said that US-Russia ties are “lamentable” which will also be a part of the discussion between both the leaders. Biden and Putin are set to hold a video conference on 7 December and according to Sputnik, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has said that the bilateral ties between both nations would be discussed. The spokesperson also added that the presidents will go through the implementation of the agreements that they reached during the Geneva summit on 16 June 2021. 

Reportedly, Peskov informed that Biden and Putin will even identify the issues which have been dealt with successfully along with the ones that require extra effort. The Tuesday call between American and Russian presidents came after both leaders in June this year discussed a range of issues including cybersecurity and cooperation in the Arctic. Additionally, they had agreed to pull back from some of the mutually punitive measures against each other’s diplomatic measures. 

(IMAGE: AP)