United States President Joe Biden held a bilateral virtual meet with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Tuesday. The military buildup at Ukraine’s border took the centre stage at the diplomatic dialogue, according to a statement from the White House.

According to the meeting readout released by the White House, Biden told Putin that the United States and European allies “would respond with strong economic and other measures in the event of military escalation”

“President Biden reiterated his support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and called for de-escalation and a return to diplomacy”, the White House statement read.

Also Read: Biden vs Putin: USA will send troops if Russia invades Ukraine

Just hours before the call got underway, Ukrainian officials charged Russia was continuing to escalate the crisis by sending tanks and snipers to war-torn eastern Ukraine to “provoke return fire.” Ukraine’s Defense Ministry alleged that Russia is holding “training camps under the leadership of regular servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces.”

“We have consulted significantly with our allies and believe we have a path forward that would impose significant and severe harm on the Russian economy,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday, according to reports from Associated Press.

Ahead of the Putin call, Biden on Monday spoke with leaders of the United Kingdom, France, Germany and Italy to coordinate messaging and potential sanctions.

The White House said in a statement that the leaders called on Russia to “de-escalate tensions” and agreed that diplomacy “is the only way forward to resolve the conflict.”

Also Read: Ukraine says Russia’s border buildup meant to ‘provoke return fire’

According to the White House readout, the two world leaders also brought up other bilateral and multilateral issues like ransomware, strategic stability and joint work on regional issues such as Iran.

Russia has reportedly been significantly boosting its military capabilities along its international borders on the west, which it shared with Ukraine.

(With AP inputs)