Emmanuel Macron, the French president, has claimed that his negotiations with Russia are likely to avoid a military conflict, ahead of his visit to Moscow this week.

Mr Macron issued the bold claim, which puts his credibility as a negotiator on the line, during an interview with a French newspaper in which he also played down concerns that Vladimir Putin aims to invade Ukraine.

The interview came just a day after US intelligence suggested Moscow is stepping up moves towards a potential full-scale invasion, and has in place 70 percent of the forces it would need for such an attack.

US officials estimated a major attack could take Kyiv in two days, and leave 25,000 to 50,000 civilians dead, along with 5,000 to 25,000 Ukrainian soldiers and 3,000 to 10,000 Russian troops.

The French president told the Journal de Dimanche. “The intensity of the dialogue we have had with Russia and this visit to Moscow are likely to prevent [a military operation] from happening. Then we will discuss the terms of de-escalation,” 

“I have always been in a deep dialogue with President Putin and our responsibility is to build historic solutions.”

Mr Macron went on to suggest that Russia’s decision to amass 100,000 troops at Ukraine’s border was merely part of a wider strategy to gain concessions from the West on security.

“The geopolitical objective of Russia today is clearly not Ukraine, but to clarify the rules of cohabitation with NATO and the EU,” he said.

His comments are likely to alarm other Nato members, notably the United States and Britain, who have warned that a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine could be imminent. Both countries suspect that Mr Putin could be using concerns over Nato’s presence and expansion in the east as a pretext to launch an invasion.

One of Russia’s key demands is blocking Ukraine from becoming a Nato member, which Western countries have dismissed as they believe countries should be free to decide for themselves whether to join the alliance.

But Mr Macron said that Russia had a right to seek assurances on security near its borders. “The security and sovereignty of Ukraine or any other European state cannot be a subject for compromise, while it is also legitimate for Russia to pose the question of its own security,” he said.

Kyiv has consistently sought to play down fears of an imminent Russian incursion as it seeks to prevent harm to its economy, with President Volodymyr Zelensky urging Western allies not to stir “panic”. On Sunday, the presidency said it believed a diplomatic solution was more likely than military escalation. 

Moscow’s deputy ambassador to the United Nations, Dmitry Polyanskiy, meanwhile dismissed Washington’s reports of a potential invasion as “madness and scaremongering,” suggesting it was as likely as the US invading the UK.

Mr Macron is due to meet Mr Putin in Moscow on Monday.