LAST UPDATE: 18.49
US President Joe Biden today reiterated his warning that the threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine is “very high”, saying he “expects it to happen in the coming days”.
Speaking to reporters as he left the White House, the US president noted that “every indication we have is that they are preparing to enter Ukraine”, as reported by Reuters.
He also said there were no plans for a telephone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Asked how high the threat of a Russian invasion is at the moment, Biden replied “it is very high”, adding that “I have a feeling it will happen in the coming days”.
He also said that Russia had not withdrawn its forces from the Ukrainian border and that the United States had reason to believe that Moscow was conducting covert operations to justify an invasion of Ukraine.
However, he expressed his belief that a diplomatic solution remains possible and in this context asked Foreign Minister Anthony Blinken to make a statement today at the United Nations.
“It will show the way from now on,” he said.
Shortly before Biden’s remarks, a senior State Department official said the United States had received a response from Russia to US security proposals, but that the US president had not yet been notified.
Earlier in the day, Russia deported the number two US diplomat to Moscow, Bart Gorman, the deputy chief of staff for the US mission in Russia, a State Department spokesman said, warning of a U.S. response to the “unprovoked” move.
Blinken: Russia prepares for immediate invasion and provocations with chemical weapons
For his part, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken warned on Thursday from the UN Security Council that the Russian armed forces were preparing intensively for an attack on Ukraine “within days”, adding that Russia planned to create a pretext for an attack on a neighboring country that would involve an alleged or actual chemical weapons attack.
The US diplomat also stressed that he had sent a letter to his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, proposing a close meeting on European territory within the next week.
He also called on Russia to declare openly and without asterisks before the SA. that it does not intend to invade Ukraine.
Source: Capital
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