U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov have agreed to meet next week as tensions remain high over Ukraine. On Thursday, President Biden said there is a “very high” threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine and that Russia might stage a “false flag” operation to justify an attack. Secretary of State Blinken repeated the claim when he addressed the U.N. Security Council.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken: “We don’t know exactly the form it will take. It could be a fabricated so-called terrorist bombing inside Russia, the invented discovery of a mass grave, a staged drone strike against civilians or a fake — even a real — attack using chemical weapons.”
Russia’s U.N. ambassador blasted Blinken’s comments as political posturing. Russia’s Foreign Ministry insists no invasion is being planned and said the U.S. and NATO are seeking to pressure and devalue Russia’s proposals for security guarantees.
On Thursday, Ukraine and Russian-backed separatists in the Donbas region accused each other of violating a ceasefire agreement. Meanwhile, Russia has announced plans to stage massive drills on Saturday of its nuclear forces.
Today President Biden is hosting a phone call with NATO allies; meanwhile, Vice President Kamala Harris is attending the Munich Security Conference, where she’ll speak with the president of Ukraine and a dozen other heads of state.