The US and Russia trade strong language, with America accusing Moscow of continuing talks while also escalating the crisis - and Russia's deputy foreign minister says the country is "not afraid of anyone, even not of the US".
Friday 21 January 2022 18:13, UK
Thanks for joining us this afternoon as the US and Russia held talks in Switzerland over rising tensions at the border of Ukraine.
We're signing off the blog for now, but you can follow live politics updates by clicking below.
In case you missed it, the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken earlier discussed Iran with Russian diplomat Sergei Lavrov during talks on Ukraine.
Mr Blinken warned there was only a brief window to bring talks to save the 2015 Iran nuclear deal to a successful conclusion.
He said the deal was an example of how Moscow and Washington can work together on security issues.
"The talks with Iran about a mutual return to compliance with the JCPOA have reached a decisive moment," Mr Blinken said.
"If a deal is not reached in the next few weeks, Iran's ongoing nuclear advances will make it impossible to return to the JCPOA. But right now, there's still a window, a brief one, to bring those talks to a successful conclusion and address the remaining concerns of all sides."
The 2015 agreement between Iran and world powers lifted sanctions against Tehran in exchange for restrictions on its atomic activities.
By Dominic Waghorn, international affairs editor
America and Russia appear to have pulled back from the brink for now in talks over Ukraine in Geneva.
In the words of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, there was no breakthrough but the two countries are on a "clear path" to understanding each others' concerns.
That means the prospect of war in Europe recedes a little for now. There had been fears of a breakdown in the US-Russian talks precipitating military action over Ukraine.
For all Russia's thinly veiled threats to security in Europe and deadlines for the US to respond to sweeping demands, Moscow's diplomats seem willing to carry on talking.
Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov was sounding unusually conciliatory in his news conference. He can be known to use English to ram home a point in pithy one-liners, but today he was sticking to Russian and sounding far from combative.
The talks were constructive and useful, he said.
Last week Russian diplomats said diplomacy had hit a dead end and were sounding ominous. They clearly have found common ground to explore with their American counterparts.
A Russian official told Sky News the Americans had been stubborn as hell but there were morsels worth chewing over.
The crisis may have been postponed rather than averted.
Russia has given the Americans another week to reply in writing to their demands but for now least there is less danger of the crisis sliding into conflict.
If you want a simple explanation of the ongoing issues between Russia and the West, this video should help.
This is from Sky's chief correspondent Stuart Ramsay in Kharkiv, Eastern Ukraine...
A thin, metal fence is all that divides Russia and Ukraine here in the Kharkiv region.
And while out filming today along the freezing cold border we encountered Russian border patrol. They patrol here near-daily, but their Ukrainian counterparts tell us it feels more tense than usual because of growing fears of a Russian invasion.
Although the Ukrainian border force officers at the scene say that Russian activity has not dramatically increased at their post, they're preparing for the worst.
The Kharkiv region shares a 280-kilometre border with Russia, but only 80 kilometres is fenced. The rest is open farmland.
Ukrainian officers monitor Russian movements with camera systems along the border.
Today, Ukraine's President Volodymyr ZelenAG百家乐在线官网 warned in an interview that a major city like Kharkiv, the second biggest in the country with a population of over one million, could be a target for the Russians if they invade.
The Polish president has tweeted his support after talks with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr ZelenAG百家乐在线官网.
"I told President ZelenAG百家乐在线官网 that Ukraine can count on our country's support," Andrzej Duda wrote on Twitter.
"Poland rejects the concept of spheres of influence and supports full Euro-Atlantic integration of Ukraine."
By Mark Stone, US correspondent
Antony Blinken's demeanour was hardly upbeat.
They're still talking, though. That's good. America has committed to written responses to Russia's demands. That's good.
Don't expect the responses to satisfy Russia - but it allows space for more dialogue.
Blinken attempted to quell any doubts about America's commitment to Ukrainian defence and NATO unity which emerged from Biden's language two days ago.
The logical next step if the two sides are to pursue a diplomatic path is a Putin-Biden meeting.
