WASHINGTON, February 12. /TASS/. The leaders of the United States, Canada and several European leaders spoke in favor of a diplomatic solution to the Ukrainian issue at a video conference on Friday, the White House said in a statement.

"They [participants of the talks] expressed their desire for a diplomatic solution to the crisis, and discussed recent engagements with Russia in multiple formats," the document says.

Moreover, the leaders "agreed on the importance of coordinated efforts to deter" what West sees as possible Russian aggression against Ukraine, and to impose tough economic measures if Russia opts for "military escalation."

"They committed to continued close consultation, including working with and through NATO, the EU, the OSCE, and the UN," the White House said.

Participants in the call included Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Charles Michel, President Emmanuel Macron of France, Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany, Prime Minister Mario Draghi of Italy, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, President Andrzej Duda of Poland, President Klaus Iohannis of Romania, and Prime Minister Boris Johnson of the United Kingdom. According to the US administration, the event lasted approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes.

Concerns over Moscow’s alleged preparations for an invasion into Ukraine have been increasingly announced in the West and in Kiev recently. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov castigated these statements as an empty and groundless escalation of tension, emphasizing that Russia posed no threat to anyone. At the same time, the Kremlin press secretary did not exclude some possible provocations to justify such claims and warned that the attempts to resolve the Ukrainian conflict by force would carry extremely serious consequences.