US President Joe Biden has vowed to shut down a key Russian gas pipeline to Germany if Moscow invades Ukraine.

Speaking after talks with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Washington, Mr Biden said the US would “bring an end” to the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.

Their talks came as French President Emmanuel Macron met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow and expressed hope that war could be avoided.

There are growing Western fears of a Russian invasion, which Moscow denies.

–BBC