Erdogan offers Ukraine-Russia summit as Europe pushes to defuse tensions

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan offered Thursday on a visit to Kyiv to hold a Ukraine-Russia summit, as EU leaders stepped up outreach to the Kremlin to defuse fears Moscow could invade. 

The diplomatic offensive came as Russia accused the United States of ratcheting up "tensions" by sending 1,000 soldiers to Romania and 2,000 to Poland to bolster NATO's eastern flank.

As Moscow refuses to pull back over 100,000 troops from Ukraine's borders, the leaders of European powerhouses Germany and France said they were eyeing possible visits to Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.

French President Emmanuel Macron was set to hold his third phone call in a week with Putin later on Thursday and also talk to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Western powers have been engaged in intense diplomatic efforts, coupled with the threat of sanctions against Putin's inner circle, to deter any further attack on ex-Soviet Ukraine, despite strenuous denials from Moscow.

Erdogan, who is pursuing his own diplomatic track, reaffirmed at a meeting with Zelensky his offer to host a peace summit with Putin.

The Turkish leader is looking to leverage his special relations with Putin and strong support for Kyiv to set up peace talks.

Zelensky thanked him for the efforts and insisted he was "ready to do everything possible in all platforms and in all formats" to bring peace to Ukraine. 

But Erdogan's push for a sit-down has so far been stymied by Kremlin anger over NATO member Turkey's supply of combat drones to Kyiv and the two sides on Thursday inked a fresh deal aimed at expanding drone production in Ukraine.