“We still don’t believe a final decision has been made” but “military action could come at any time,” Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said during a press briefing. “It is entirely possible” that Vladimir Putin “acts with little or no warning,” he added.
According to Washington, Moscow reinforced during the weekend its military force on the borders of Ukraine, where more than 100,000 soldiers have been massed for weeks.
The spokesman also announced Mr. Austin’s visit on Tuesday to NATO headquarters in Brussels, then to Poland and Lithuania. The US minister will meet with military and government officials to “discuss Russia’s military deployment in and around Ukraine.”
John Kirby also felt that China’s “tacit support” for Russia on the Ukrainian issue was “deeply alarming”.
US State Department spokesman Ned Price, for his part, said the United States had seen “no concrete signs of de-escalation” on the Russian-Ukrainian border. Previously, the head of Russian diplomacy Sergei Lavrov had estimated in Moscow that there was “always a chance” to find a compromise.
“It is very possible that Russia will decide to take military action, as new Russian forces continue to arrive at the Ukrainian border,” Price said.
“We remain engaged in a process of de-escalation through diplomacy” but Russia must engage “in de-escalation and engage in real dialogue and diplomacy”, he added.
The United States has decided to move its embassy in Ukraine from Kiev to Lviv, in the west of the country, in the face of the “dramatic acceleration” of the deployment of Russian forces on the border.
Ukraine Unity Day
In Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday declared a day of unity for Wednesday, cited by media as a potential date for a Russian attack. “We are told that February 16 will be the day of the attack. We will make it a day of unity,” the head of state said in an address to the nation, calling on Ukrainians to hang the national flag and display its blue and yellow colors on this day.
Mr. Zelensky also accused Russia of “waging war” against Ukraine “on all fronts” and of “seeking to sow panic among Ukrainians and investors”. “Our state is stronger than ever” and “we are preparing dignified responses to all possible attacks”.
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