The US President Joe Biden has asked its citizens to leave “now” Ukraine for the threatened invasion by Russia, which launched joint military maneuvers in neighboring Belarus despite European diplomatic efforts. The US Secretary of State Anthony Blinkenwent further to ensure that the russian attack Can occur “anytime”.
“American citizens should leave now (…) Things could accelerate quickly,” Biden said in an interview with NBC News, warning of the power of the Russian Army, with more than 100,000 soldiers deployed on the borders with Ukraine.
The US president, however, once again ruled out the sending soldiers to Ukraine, not even to evacuate its citizens in case of invasion. That would be “a world war. When the Americans and the Russians start shooting at each other, we’re in a very different world,” Biden said.
diluted hope
The interview was broadcast after the start of some important joint maneuvers of the Russian and Belarusian armies at the gates of Ukraine that clouded the incipient signs of hope after weeks of intense diplomatic efforts in Europe. These exercises, concentrating especially on the Belarusian region of Brest, bordering Ukraineinvolve the deployment of missiles and heavy weapons and, according to the United States, 30,000 additional Russian soldiers.
The NATO He assured that the deployment of missiles, heavy weapons and armed soldiers in that country located just north of Ukraine was “a dangerous moment for security in Europe”, which is experiencing the moments of greatest tension since the Cold War. The Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelenski, accused Moscow of exercising a “psychological pressure” about the former Soviet republic, now leaning towards the West.
Defense maneuvers, according to Moscow
The european leaders they entered a diplomatic frenzy in recent weeks to try to defuse the crisis, including visits to Moscow by French President Emmanuel Macron and soon by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. The new German leader met with the leaders of the Baltic states on Thursday and warned Russia “not to underestimate unity and determination as a member of the European Union and a NATO ally.”
In an attempt to avoid “unfortunate incidents”the chief of the US General Staff, General Mark Milley, had an unusual conversation with his Belarusian counterpart, General Victor Goulevitch, the Pentagon said.
The russian defense minister He insisted that the exercises would focus on “suppressing and repelling external aggression” and the Kremlin promised that the troops would be repatriated once the exercises, scheduled until February 20, are over.
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In addition to the maneuvers in Belarus and the deployment on the Ukrainian border, Russia sent six warships across the Bosporus for naval exercises in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. Faced with European outrage, the head of Russian diplomacy, Sergey Lavrov, described his concern about these exercises as “incomprehensible” and warned that “ultimatums and threats lead nowhere.”
Lavrov received his British counterpart, Liz Truss, in Moscow, who called for the withdrawal of the russian troops from the Ukrainian border. London’s diplomatic offensive was completed by Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s visit to NATO and Poland. Johnson insisted on convincing Putin to participate “in the de-escalation” during a visit to his troops deployed in Poland.