{O/C} The White House National Security Adviser to President Joe Biden today set the tone via yet another stern warning that a Russian incursion into Ukraine could happen anytime.
This comes as U.S. troops arrived in Europe to prepare for what could turn out to be a costly and catastrophic conflict.
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White House senior national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, warned today that Russia could invade Ukraine anytime, provided that Moscow has assembled at least 70 percent of its military firepower the country proposes to devote to the conflict.
{Soundbite} JAKE SULLIVAN, U.S. National Security Advisor: An invasion of Ukraine could happen at any time.
Sources say the White House has briefed lawmakers that a full-scale Russian invasion would result in the takeover of the capital, Kiev, as well as some 50,000 casualties.
U.S. officials have reportedly discerned a straw in the wind presaging that Putin intends to start an invasion in the coming months despite unclear size and scale. But they are also adamant a diplomatic solution to the crisis remains achievable.
Among the overwhelming evidence is an exercise of Russia's strategic nuclear forces that was rescheduled for mid-February to March, while that exercise usually takes place in fall. This coincides with what U.S. officials see as the most likely window for invasion.
What's more, intelligence from last week revealed that Moscow has drawn up a plot to fabricate an attack by Ukrainian forces to create a pretext for a Russian incursion.
All this comes amid a few dozen elite U.S. troops and equipment arriving in southeastern Poland near the Ukrainian border, along with hundreds of infantry troops that will arrive shortly in an apparent effort to fight fire with fire as the U.S. prepare to stamp on any attempts to invade and annex Ukraine.
{Soundbite} We believe that Russians have put in place the capabilities to mount a significant military operation into Ukraine, and we have been working hard to prepare a response.
At the same time, France's president, Emmanuel Macron, is slated to meet with Russian president Vladimir Putin for talks aimed at ending the acrimonious face-off.
This, as German chancellor Olaf Scholz is due to get off on the right foot with U.S. President Joe Biden later today in his first efforts to convince Biden that Germany, under his new leadership, is all for western efforts to face down Russia.
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