Ukraine

2022 - 2 - 11

russia ukraine putin

Post cover — Image courtesy of "The Guardian"

Biden warns Putin: you'll pay a heavy cost if you attack Ukraine (The Guardian)

US president fears 'great suffering' in the event of an invasion as Russia denies there are any plans for an attack.

Tobias Ellwood, the Conservative chair of the defence select committee, described the tensions as “our Cuban missile crisis moment” and called for British-led Nato divisions to be deployed to the country. Dominic Cummings, the PM’s former chief adviser and now his fiercest critic, condemned Tory MPs for allowing Johnson to continue in office “while another major global crisis unfolds”. Ukrainian forces began 10 days of training on Thursday, to coincide with Russian exercises in Belarus that have been seen as a key part of Russia’s threatening buildup. However, Tom Tugendhat, the Tory chair of the foreign affairs select committee, said that providing training assistance was more useful to Ukraine than the deployment of British troops. This may be interpreted as a clause which formally authorises the Russian state to use force in Ukraine.” He said the country’s own troops were “increasingly capable to defend themselves”. The first duty of any government is to keep its people safe. The government must act now to ensure it is prepared to provide safety for British citizens in case of any incursion.” It brought “no fundamental change” to the worsening crisis, according to a senior US official briefing reporters afterwards. Several governments yesterday urged their citizens to leave Ukraine as soon as possible. “I think there’s too much out there about a full-scale war from Russia, and people are even naming dates. “Hysteria has reached its peak,” Ushakov said.

Ukraine tensions: A dozen nations tell citizens to leave Ukraine (BBC News)

In a phone call, US President Joe Biden again warned Russian leader Vladimir Putin of the costs of any invasion. For his part, Ukrainian President Volodymyr ...

A US defence official has been summoned by Moscow over the incident. Meanwhile, some 7,500km (4,660 miles) away on Russia's eastern side, the Russian defence ministry says it spotted a US Navy submarine inside its territorial waters. Not far to the north, across the border in Belarus, Russia's war games are now well under way. The sentiment was repeated by people of all age groups attending the demonstration. But he is ready, if necessary, to pack the family into the car and drive 300 miles to Poland. He loves Ukraine and can't quite believe it's come to this. The march was organised by a right-wing nationalist group called Gonor and anti-Zelensky far-right activist Sergiy Sternenko, but it attracted other people too. Tensions have steadily increased as Russia has continued to deploy troops along Ukraine's eastern border. President Zelensky said the country had to be ready for any eventuality. If you or someone else has additional 100% reliable information about the Russian Federation's invasion of Ukraine... please share it with us." Canada is also moving its embassy staff to Lviv, near the border with Poland, Canadian media reported. Stuart McKenzie, who's lived in Kyiv for 28 years and runs a successful business, hopes to get his wife and two sons out on a flight. Non-essential staff have been ordered to leave the US Embassy in Ukraine's capital Kyiv, and consular services will be suspended from Sunday, although "a small consular presence" will remain in the western city of Lviv "to handle emergencies".

Ukraine crisis: 'Whiff of Munich in the air' - UK fears Russian invasion ... (Sky News)

The defence secretary warns it is "worrying" that Russia's military build-up has continued despite high-level diplomatic talks increasing - prompting fears ...

"The diplomatic path remains open," Mr Blinken said. And all this information is just provoking panic and can't help us." And he warned that it was "worrying" that Russia's military build-up has continued despite high-level diplomatic talks increasing - prompting fears that the Kremlin is intent on invading Ukraine come what may.

12 Reasons Why A Russian Attack On Ukraine Looks Imminent (Forbes)

Allied Resolve joint military drills held by Russia and Belarus · Russia's President Putin and France's President Macron give press conference in Moscow · Russian ...

While the prominence of the mud factor has arguably been exaggerated in some commentary, it nonetheless may favor February for offensives over April. Furthermore, Russia’s conscript soldiers will see their one-year terms of enlistment begin to expire, and new conscripts will require training at base. Unfortunately, that’s exactly why the current Russian buildup is seen as more credible than a preceding one that occurred early in 2021. Despite the ongoing war between Ukraine government forces and pro-Russian separatists in Eastern Ukraine, Ukraine’s military has been careful to keep the temperature low in recent months to avoid incidents that could serve as a pretext for Russia to invade. It’s also advised most of the staff of its embassy in Kyiv to leave. Russia had not tapped the VDV units earlier in the buildup, perhaps because they can be transported to theater comparatively rapidly. Keeping troops out-of-region deployed in tents during harsh winter weather has also been bad for morale and even health, with Covid outbreaks allegedly rampant among Russian troops. According to spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, “fearing possible provocations, we decided to optimize the staff of Russian foreign missions in Ukraine.” Military analysts are most readily impressed by displays of logistics. People, after all, can be whisked to western Russia or Belarus quickly by air, and there are otherwise compelling reasons to keep personnel at their home bases until absolutely necessary. Rosgvardia (“National Guard”) are Russia’s over 300,000-strong corps of internal security troops. The third demand is Kyiv’s matter to decide, but per Russian media, Moscow may have thought Washington would twist Ukrainian President Zelensky’s arm to follow such a policy.

US says Vladimir Putin intransigent over Ukraine invasion despite ... (Financial Times)

We'll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest War in Ukraine news every morning. Russian forces remain on the brink of invading Ukraine, US ...

Biden warns Putin of ‘severe costs’ of Ukraine invasion (unknown)

Ukraine news from February 11: US president tells Russian leader an invasion would 'produce widespread human suffering'.

“Right now, the people’s biggest enemy is panic in our country. “The EU and its member states are coordinating their actions in view of the current threats on Ukraine. Our diplomatic missions are not closing. RIA said more than 30 Russian ships have left the ports of Sevastopol and Novorossiisk “in accordance to the plans of the drills” near Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014. The call started at 16:04 GMT. Butler said the residents of the city know that the situation is “extremely tense” and that there is a sense that it could be “a lot more critical than before”. “The armed force of Ukraine are constantly monitoring the situation and are ready to rebuff any encroachment on its territorial integrity and sovereignty.” “At the moment, it is critically important to remain calm, to consolidate inside the country, to avoid destabilising actions and those that sow panic,” the foreign ministry said in a statement. The statements in Washington show the US has intensified its “propaganda campaign against our country”, and wants to create the impression that aggression is “inevitable”, he added. Ukrainians marched through the centre of Kyiv in a column, chanting “Glory to Ukraine” and carrying Ukrainian flags and banners that said “Ukrainians will resist” and “Invaders must die”. More than 1,000 law enforcement officers took part in the drills that aim to prepare for the “timely and effective response to situational destabilising factors”, the Ministry of Internal Affairs said in a statement. They remain in Kyiv and continue to operate in support to EU citizens and in cooperation with the Ukrainian authorities,” Josep Borrell said in a statement. In a video call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, US President Joe Biden made clear that if Russia invades Ukraine, Washington and its allies would respond “decisively and impose swift and severe costs”, according to the White House.