White House ‘Very Concerned’ By Russian Troop Movements

@AFP
White House ‘Very Concerned’ By Russian Troop Movements

The Hague (AFP) – The White House is “very concerned by the potential for escalation” after Russia massed its troops on the border with Ukraine, a close aide to U.S. President Barack Obama said Monday.

“We are watching very closely, we believe that Russia stands an enormous amount to lose” from any escalation, Deputy National Security adviser Ben Rhodes told journalists as leaders gathered in The Hague to discuss a response to the crisis.

A U.S. military officer told AFP on Monday the Russian military presence continued to increase along Ukraine’s eastern border.

“They’re still growing in numbers. They’re still in a hot state of readiness,” said the officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

However, there was no sign that Russian forces were about to launch an invasion of eastern Ukraine, the officer said.

“We haven’t seen anything to suggest anything is imminent,” the officer said. “But if they chose to move, it would not take long.”

Ukraine on Monday ordered its outnumbered troops to withdraw from Crimea after the seizure of another military base.

The Russians had roughly 20,000 troops near the border, including air and ground forces, air defense weapons, fighter jets, motorized vehicles, airborne units and cargo planes to move those troops, officers said.

“The full scope of the arsenal” was in place, the officer said.

Russian forces were deployed along main roads leading to the border but had not moved any closer to Ukraine in recent days, he said.

The United States was closely monitoring the situation, he said.

A second defense official said the Russians had more than enough troops in place to launch an operation in eastern Ukraine if it decided to.

AFP Photo/Filippo Monteforte

Start your day with National Memo Newsletter

Know first.

The opinions that matter. Delivered to your inbox every morning

Joe Biden
President Joe Biden

Last week,The Economist's presidential polling average set in motion a reevaluation of the general election when President Joe Biden pulled ahead of Donald Trump for the first time since September 2023.

Keep reading...Show less
Alex Jones

Alex Jones

At a press conference on Tuesday, March 26, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore told reporters that there was no sign of terrorism or foul play in the collapse of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge — which had been struck by a freighter. According to Moore and the Biden White House, there was no indication that it was anything other than a tragic accident.

Keep reading...Show less
{{ post.roar_specific_data.api_data.analytics }}