US Says Russia Could Launch Attack Against Ukraine 'At Any Time'. Biden Continues To Monitor Situation

With western fears of the war rising, the White House said the U.S President planned to convene his top advisers on Sunday to discuss the crisis.

This Maxar satellite image taken on February 15, 2022 shows an overview of a new helicopter deployment and troops at Valuyki, Russia, approximately 27kms east of the border with Ukraine. | Photo: AFP

New Delhi: Russia could launch an attack on Ukraine “at any time”, U.S. President Joe Biden was briefed by his national security team.

With western fears of the war rising, the White House said the U.S. President planned to convene his top advisers on Sunday to discuss the crisis.

“President Biden continues to monitor the evolving situation in Ukraine, and is being updated regularly about events on the ground by his national security team,” White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement, Reuters reported.

“They reaffirmed that Russia could launch an attack against Ukraine at any time,” he added.

Asserting an invasion of Ukraine was not inevitable, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin earlier said the Russian forces were beginning to “uncoil and move closer” to the border.

“We hope he (Putin) steps back from the brink of conflict,” he told a news conference in Lithuania, Reuters reported.

Earlier on Saturday, Russia’s strategic nuclear forces held exercises overseen by President Vladimir Putin.

The Foreign Ministers from the G7 group of nations said that they had seen no evidence Russia is reducing its military activity in the area and remained “gravely concerned” about the situation.

Calling on Russia to choose the path of diplomacy, the G7 Foreign Ministers in a statement said: “As a first step, we expect Russia to implement the announced reduction of its military activities along Ukraine's borders.”

“We have seen no evidence of this reduction,” they added.

Earlier, France and Germany urged all or some of their citizens in Ukraine to leave after Kyiv and Moscow traded accusations over new shelling near the border.