- Secretary of State Antony Blinken said
Russia has everything "in place" to attackUkraine . - He told NBC Nightly
News that he can't "put a date or an exact time" on when the assault will happen.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told NBC Nightly News "everything seems to be in place" for Russian forces to mount an attack against Ukraine before the night is over if Russia decides to do so.
He later clarified that he can't "put a date or an exact time on" when Russia might carry out a major aggression, but he said that Russia has "positioned its forces at the final point of readiness across Ukraine's borders to the north, to the east, to the south."
"Everything seems to be in place for Russia to engage in a major aggression against Ukraine," Blinken said.
A senior defense official told reporters Wednesday that a large-scale attack on Ukraine may be imminent, explaining that Russian forces are "as ready as they can be." The official said that the majority of the Russian forces near Ukraine, roughly 80%, have moved to forward positions along the border.
The official said that Russian forces have "advanced their readiness to a point where they are literally ready to go — now."
The secretary of state said there's still time "to avert a major aggression, although again, they're in their final stages of being able to engage in one."
The senior defense official who spoke to reporters Wednesday said that Russia has tremendous capability near Ukraine. According to the Department of Defense, Ukraine may be facing anywhere from 160,000 to 190,000 Russian troops and a range of capabilities such as missiles, armor, artillery, and special forces, among others.
Blinken said that if Russia keeps escalating the situation, the US will respond in kind.
He told NBC Nightly News that "at the end of the day, if that doesn't stop President Putin, we've made very clear along with all of our allies and partners that there will be massive consequences going forward, a price that Russia will have to pay for a long, long time."
Ukraine is in a national state of emergency two days after Putin signed a decree recognizing the independence of two Kremlin-backed separatist regions, including territory not under the control of the pro-Russian rebels. Moscow also said it was deploying troops into the regions to serve as "peacekeepers," while the US warned the move was part of Russia's effort to find a pretext to invade Ukraine.
The US, together with allies and partners, has already begun imposing sanctions on what it called the beginning of an invasion as Putin ordered some troops into eastern Ukraine.
Earlier this week, President Joe Biden announced that sanctions would go further than those imposed on Russia after it annexed the territory of Crimea in 2014, and that the new sanctions would target Russia's economic institutions, banks, sovereign debt, and oligarchs.
But Russia appears to be undeterred, and there are growing concerns that further aggression is on the horizon.
In addition to providing aid, including lethal aid, to Ukraine and voicing its support for the country as it faces a substantial threat from Russia, the US has also been in close contact with its NATO allies throughout the ongoing crisis.
Biden said Tuesday that he was sending additional troops and assets to the Baltic states from elsewhere in Europe to bolster the alliance's eastern flank.
He emphasized that the move, like other recent deployments and posturing in western Europe, is defensive while warning that the US and its allies are prepared to defend "every inch of NATO territory" should Russian aggression extend beyond Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, meanwhile, has publicly appealed to Russia's citizens for peace, saying in a speech from Kyiv that "the people of Ukraine and the government of Ukraine want peace."
"But if we come under attack that threaten our freedom and lives of our people we will fight back," he added.
"They're telling you that this flame will liberate the people of Ukraine, but the Ukrainian people are free," Zelensky said. "Ukraine on your TV news and the real Ukraine are two totally different countries. Ours is real."