Even if the apparent agreement for a summit holds — and there was no immediate comment from the Kremlin on Sunday night — Biden will be taking a significant gamble.

Hawkish Republicans are sure to accuse him of appeasing the Russian strongman and of rewarding his aggression in holding Ukraine hostage. If a meeting with Putin fails and an invasion follows regardless, Biden will open himself up to charges of weakness.

Any summit that is not comprehensively choreographed for success beforehand is a political high-wire act. And Biden can ill-afford blows to his prestige, with his approval rankings sliding and after his claims to statesmanship were dented by the chaotic US withdrawal from Afghanistan last year.

Still, presidents are elected to make the toughest decisions. If Biden refused to meet and war erupted in Ukraine, he would be accused of not testing diplomacy to its limit. And he has some potential cover: If Putin backtracks and a summit doesn’t happen, he will let Biden off a political hook.