According to official White House sources, Russia’s invasion against its neighboring country of Ukraine is highly imminent and could happen at any time, following a cyberattack that crashed 2 of the largest banks in Ukraine and many of its security websites.
According to CNN, roughly 30,000 Russian troops are presently participating in a 10-day military practice program near the Belarus border, which also shares a border with Ukraine. Russia’s drills were largely interpreted as a show of strength. Near the Ukraine border, Russia deployed over 100,000 soldiers, tanks, missiles, and even fresh blood supplies. Moscow has repeatedly insisted that it has no ambitions to attack Ukraine. Despite the fact that tensions between Russia and Ukraine remain high, there is no sign of a compromise.
The Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014 with Russia’s annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, is currently ongoing. Russia invaded and conquered Crimea in 2014, asserting a historic claim to the peninsula. Ukraine was a part of the Soviet Union, which collapsed in December 1991, according to Russian President Vladimir Putin, and was described as the “disintegration of historical Russia.”
Russian forces on the Crimean peninsula, according to Vladimir Putin, are there “to create suitable circumstances for the people of Crimea to peacefully express their choice.” Russians and Ukrainians have been referred to as “one country” by President Putin. He also called Ukraine’s present government “anti-Russian.” The Russian administration worried that Ukraine’s accession to the EU and NATO would construct an alliance western wall by preventing Russia’s access to the Black Sea.
According to CNN, U.S. President Joe Biden spoke for an hour with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday, February 5th. According to the White House, Biden warned during the call that an invasion of Ukraine would “create tremendous human misery and weaken Russia’s position.” If Ukraine is invaded, the US and its allies would respond with “rapid and punishing” military operations and sanctions, according to Biden.
The US and other NATO partners have made it plain that they have no intentions to send combat troops to Ukraine, but instead would provide assistance.
On Friday, the Pentagon deployed some 8,500 combat-ready troops and sent an additional 3,000 troops to Germany, Romania, and Poland. Other NATO countries have increased their assistance for the alliance’s eastern flank.
According to NBC News, numerous significant Ukrainian websites, including those of two of the country’s top banks and the defense ministry, were momentarily taken offline Tuesday following an alleged cyberattack. It was not entirely apparent who was behind the strikes.
On Tuesday, February 14th, a series of cyberattacks knocked out the websites of the Ukrainian army, the defense ministry, and major banks. Serhii Demediuk, the No. 2 official at Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, blamed Russia. Sen. Jim Risch (R-Idaho) ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, noted that Russia has often conducted cyberattacks before invading countries in the recent past. “Every time the Russians have done this, they’ve started with a cyber-attack. They did it in Georgia, they did it in Crimea, they did it in Estonia, when they didn’t even go in,” he said. “It’s in their quiver.”
The U.S. believes the window for a potential attack against Ukraine has been extended by another 4-5 days, which means it could come after the Olympics and a key gathering of world leaders in Germany over this weekend, CBS News’ Margaret Brennan reported late Wednesday.
Zelensky declared Wednesday “Unity Day,’’ a bid to show strength in the face of Russian attempts to divide his nation, where a war has simmered against Russian-backed separatists in the east for eight years.
Russia has added an additional 7,000 more troops near Ukraine’s border. The US and its NATO allies are closely watching Russia, as they continue to seek diplomacy before anything further happens.
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Russia-Ukraine Tension Continues to Escalate
February 22, 2022
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