The Financial Times reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin has promised his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron that Moscow will withdraw troops from Belarus when the joint exercises end later this month.
Citing unnamed officials in France, the British newspaper said that during a 5-hour meeting at the Kremlin on February 7, Mr. Putin told Mr. Macron that Russian soldiers currently in Belarus as part of the "Union Resolution 2022" exercise will withdraw after the end of the exercise.
The joint drills, expected to last until February 20, will take place at the same time as the reported increase in Russian troops near the Ukrainian border.
Moscow has been accused of gathering more than 100,000 troops at the border, with some believing it is a sign of an imminent military attack. The Kremlin has repeatedly denied the claim, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has denied it. The Belarus border is less than 200km north of the Ukrainian capital Kiev.
If the withdrawal promise is confirmed by Mr. Putin, it could significantly reduce tensions as Western countries send soldiers and military equipment to Ukraine. Neither of the presidents mentioned any such agreements at a press conference following the talks in Moscow.
According to the Financial Times, President Putin also said that he will not carry out any new "military initiatives" and decided to open discussions on the deployment of Russian troops. Moreover, according to the newspaper's sources, the two presidents have agreed on a "collective security dialogue".
The talks between Mr Putin and Mr Macron also come amid efforts between Russia and NATO on a legally binding security deal that appear to have stalled. Moscow hopes that the US-led military bloc will agree to stop expanding to the east and also wants foreign countries to move their troops and weapons away from the Russian border.
After the meeting, President Macron revealed that he had made a proposal to "enseure specific security" for Mr. Putin.
" President Putin has assured me that he is ready to participate in this sense and wishes to maintain the stability and territorial integrity of Ukraine," the French president said, while the Russian leader considered Mr. Macron's ideas as "a viable foundation for the next common steps".
President Macron met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kiev on February 8.
