The US Secretary of State announced on Friday that Russia was concentrating more troops on the border with Ukraine and warned that an invasion could take place “at any time” even during the Winter Olympics in Beijing.
“We are in a period where an invasion could begin at any time, frankly, that includes [o período em que estão a decorrer] The Olympics, “said Anthony Blinken, who dismissed speculation that Moscow could wait until the end of the Games to hide from its Chinese ally.
The Winter Olympics will be held in the Chinese capital until February 20.
“Simply put, we continue to see the most worrying signs of Russian expansion,” said Blingen, who is touring the Pacific.
According to a US official, the United States of America (USA) “wants to resolve differences” through “diplomacy” with Russia.
“We made every effort to negotiate with Russia,” Blingen said.
“But at the same time, we were very clear about strengthening prevention and security, and we made it clear to Russia that if the path of aggression is chosen, it will have major consequences,” he said.
“We are dealing with one of the largest armies in the world. This is a very different situation and things can get out of hand quickly,” Blingen said.
Americans on Ukrainian soil ‘must leave now’
The US Secretary of State announced that US citizens on Ukrainian soil should “leave now.”
Plinken issued the warning in Melbourne, Australia, after meeting his colleagues from India, Japan and Australia as part of the Security Council (Quad).
US President Joe Biden has again instructed US citizens in Ukraine to leave the country, noting that a possible confrontation between US and Russian forces could be a “world war”.
“American citizens must leave now,” Biden said in an interview with NBC News on Thursday.
According to US military and intelligence estimates, the Russian military could launch a full-scale offensive with tanks within 48 hours of reaching the Ukrainian capital, Kiev.
On Wednesday, the White House approved a Pentagon (Department of Defense) program in which the Polish military is stationed in Poland to help eventually allow American citizens to leave Ukraine in the event of a Russian invasion and to assist American citizens from Ukraine.
Ukraine and its Western allies accuse Russia of concentrating tens of thousands of troops on the Ukrainian border to re-occupy the country after it annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014.
Russia denies any war intentions, but must reduce the crisis to its demands, including guaranteeing that Ukraine will never be part of NATO.