The Kremlin and the West have held out the possibility of a diplomatic path out of the Ukraine crisis even as Russia moved troops and military hardware closer to its neighbour.
At a made-for-television meeting with President Vladimir Putin, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov signalled that Russia was ready to keep talking about the security grievances that have led to the crisis.
The comments seemed designed to send a message to the world about Mr Putin’s own position and offered some hope that war could be averted, even as Washington and allies kept up their warnings that troops could move on Ukraine as soon as Wednesday.
The fears stem from the fact that Russia has massed more than 130,000 Russian troops on Ukraine’s borders to the north, south and east. It has also launched massive military drills in Belarus, an ally that also borders Ukraine.
Russia denies it has any plans to invade Ukraine, and Mr Lavrov argued that Moscow should hold more talks, despite the West’s refusal to consider Russia’s main demands.
The talks “can’t go on indefinitely, but I would suggest to continue and expand them at this stage”, Mr Lavrov said, noting that Washington has offered to discuss limits for missile deployments in Europe, restrictions on military drills and other confidence-building measures.
Moscow wants guarantees that Nato will not allow Ukraine and other former Soviet countries to join as members. It also wants the alliance to halt weapons deployments to Ukraine and roll back its forces from Eastern Europe.
Mr Lavrov said possibilities for talks “are far from being exhausted”.
Mr Putin noted that the West could try to draw Russia into “endless talks” and questioned whether there is still a chance to reach agreement. Mr Lavrov replied that his ministry would not allow the US and its allies to stonewall Russia’s main requests.
The US reacted coolly.
“The path for diplomacy remains available if Russia chooses to engage constructively,” White House principal deputy press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said. “However, we are clear-eyed about the prospects of that, given the steps Russia is taking on the ground in plain sight.”
US officials said the Russian military continued apparent attack preparations along Ukraine’s borders.
A US defence official said small numbers of Russian ground units have been moving out of larger assembly areas for several days, taking up positions closer to the Ukrainian border at what would be departure points if Putin launched an invasion.
Maxar Technologies, a commercial satellite imagery company that has been monitoring the Russian build-up, reported increased Russian military activity in Belarus, Crimea and western Russia, including the arrival of helicopters, ground-attack aircraft and fighter-bomber jets at forward locations.
The photos taken over a 48-hour period also show ground forces leaving their garrisons and combat units moving into convoy formation.
Still, Ukrainian security and defence council chief Oleksiy Danilov downplayed the threat of invasion but warned of the risk of “internal destabilisation” by unspecified forces.
“Today we do not see that a large-scale offensive by the Russian Federation can take place either on (Feb.) 16th or the 17th,” he told reporters. “We are aware of the risks that exist in the territory of our country. But the situation is absolutely under control.”
As if to show defiance, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Wednesday would be a “day of national unity,” calling on the country to display the blue-and-yellow flag and sing the national anthem in the face of “hybrid threats”.
“It is not the first threat the strong Ukrainian people have faced,” Mr Zelenskyy said on Monday evening in a video address to the nation. “We’re calm. We’re strong. We’re together.”
