Emmanuel Macron claims Vladimir Putin promised no further escalation in Ukraine

French President Emmanuel Macron has claimed that Russian President Vladimir Putin gave him assurances that there would be no further escalation of the Ukraine crisis.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday following a round of talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Mr Macron said the Russian President had told him he “would not be initiating an escalation”.

Mr Macron later claimed that Mr Putin had also said there would be no “deployment” in Belarus, where Russia has stationed a large number of troops for war games.

The Kremlin firmly denied any suggestion of a guarantee between the two leaders. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that “in the current situation, Moscow and Paris can’t be reaching any deals”.

Mr Peskov also insisted that withdrawing Russian troops from Belarus after the manoeuvres had been the Kremlin’s plan all along.

Mr Macron’s meeting with Mr Zelensky came amid mounting fears of a Russian invasion. Moscow has massed over 100,000 troops near Ukraine’s borders, but insists it has no plans to attack.

Following the meeting with the French President, Mr Zelensky said he would welcome concrete steps from Putin for de-escalation, but added that he didn’t “trust words in general.”

Mr Macron also sought to temper expectations, saying he “does not believe this crisis can be settled in a few hours, through discussions”.

However, he said that he believed his talks with Mr Putin had helped prevent the crisis from escalating further. Both Mr Putin and Mr Zelensky had told him they were committed to the principles of the 2014 Minsk accords, he said, which could offer a path to resolving their ongoing disputes.

"This shared determination is the only way allowing us to create peace, the only way to create a viable political solution," Mr Macron added.

The United States and the EU have threatened Russia with sanctions if it invades Ukraine. Moscow, still Europe’s largest energy supplier, has dismissed the sanctions as an empty threat.

US President Joe Biden on Monday warned that he would halt plans for the opening of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline to Germany in the event of a Russian invasion.

Prime minister Boris Johnson has warned Mr Putin that invading Ukraine would backfire and only serve to strengthen Nato.

In an article for The Times on Tuesday, he wrote that he was considering dispatching RAF Typhoon fighters and Royal Navy warships to protect south-eastern Europe after sending 350 British troops to Poland.

Mr Johnson said the UK would “will not flinch now” and will remain “unconditional and immovable” in supporting Nato.