Russian President Vladimir Putin (right) listens during a joint press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron after their talks on Feb 7, 2022 in Moscow. (THIBAULT CAMUS / POOL / AP)
The meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and French President Emmanuel Macron has raised the hope of the situation in Ukraine de-escalating, but a "decisive shift" has yet to come as relations between Russia and NATO are getting more complicated and mistrust between Washington and the Kremlin is growing, a researcher said.
Emerging from a more than five-hour meeting in the Kremlin on Monday, the leaders voiced hope that a solution could be found to the crisis between Russia and the West.
Putin said Moscow is willing to "find compromises" and that it is "possible" to move forward on "a number" of proposals presented by Macron that might lead to the de-escalation of the situation in Ukraine.
Macron said dialogue with Russia "is the sole way of ensuring security and stability in Europe".
If the existing mechanisms and treaties are insufficient to resolve the security situation, the French president suggested, new ones should be devised and put in place.
Sun Zhuangzhi, director of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' Institute of Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies, said Macron's visit had a positive influence to some extent on easing the tension.
"France, which holds the Council of the European Union presidency, has made efforts in heading off conflicts in the Ukraine crisis, and it plays a positive role in easing the tensions as a mediator," said Sun.
The geopolitical tensions in Ukraine have also opened a fissure within NATO and in the US, Sun said, adding that European countries, led by France and Germany, have been trying to solve the problem in a way different from the US.
Despite the talks' optimistic atmosphere, Sun cautioned that it is not realistic to count on a meeting to address the geopolitical problem.
"A decisive shift has yet to come as relations between Russia and NATO are getting more complicated and mistrust between Washington and the Kremlin is growing," he said. "The solution to the crisis will depend on the outcome of future negotiations and interactions between Washington and Moscow."
The meeting in Moscow came at the start of a week of intense diplomacy over the Ukraine crisis, with US President Joe Biden also hosting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Washington on Monday.
Biden vowed again at the talks to shut down the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Europe if Moscow were to "invade" Ukraine.
Russia has repeatedly slammed claims about possible Russian aggression against Ukraine as "empty and groundless".
Agencies contributed to this story.
