Biden urges Americans in Ukraine to leave, says 'things could go crazy quickly'
CBC
The latest:
Russia is massing yet more troops near Ukraine and an invasion could come at any time, perhaps before the end of this month's Winter Olympics, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Friday.
In his starkest warning yet to Americans in Ukraine to get out, U.S. President Joe Biden said he would not send troops to rescue U.S. citizens in the event of a Russian assault.
"Things could go crazy quickly," Biden told NBC News, as he urged U.S. citizens in Ukraine to leave the country immediately.
Blinken, visiting Australia, told a news conference: "We're in a window when an invasion could begin at any time — and to be clear, that includes during the Olympics."
The Beijing Games end on Feb. 20.
"Simply put, we continue to see very troubling signs of Russian escalation, including new forces arriving at the Ukrainian border," Blinken said.
WATCH | Russian troops continue to mass at Ukraine border:
Russia has already massed more than 100,000 troops near Ukraine, and this week it launched joint military exercises in neighbouring Belarus and naval drills in the Black Sea.
Moscow denies plans to invade Ukraine, but says it could take unspecified "military-technical" action unless a series of demands are met, including promises from NATO never to admit Ukraine to the alliance and to withdraw its forces from eastern Europe.
The West has said those main demands are non-starters. The EU and NATO delivered joint responses this week, saying their member states had agreed to speak as one. Russia's Foreign Ministry said on Friday it had demanded an individual answer from each country and called the collective response insulting.
"Such a step cannot be seen as anything other than a sign of diplomatic impoliteness and disrespect for our request," the ministry said.
Several Western countries launched diplomatic pushes this week to persuade Russia to back down, but Moscow brushed them off, yielding no concessions to French President Emmanuel Macron during a visit Monday and openly mocking British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss during a visit Thursday.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is expected to discuss the situation with Biden and other leaders in a call on Friday.
The former secretary general of NATO says he doesn't think allies will be pulled further into the conflict in the Middle East, but he's concerned the ongoing war with Iran will benefit Russia's economy and take the world's attention away from the invasion of Ukraine.
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