The White House in a terse statement said President Joe Biden convened a meeting of the National Security Council “to discuss the latest developments regarding Russia’s military buildup on the borders of Ukraine,” but didn’t provide further details.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken were spotted entering the West Wing shortly before noon and Vice President Kamala Harris reportedly participated in the meeting remotely from Air Force Two as she flies back from Germany where she met with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, according to NBC News.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki in a statement announcing the meeting Saturday said Biden’s national security team, “reaffirmed that Russia could launch an attack against Ukraine at any time.”
Blinken earlier Sunday during an appearance on CNN’s “State of the Union” said Russia's recent decision to extend military drills in Belarus "suggest that this is dead serious, that we are on the brink of an invasion."
“We will do everything we can to try to prevent it before it happens, but equally we’re prepared, if he does follow through, to impose massive consequences, to provide for Ukraine’s ongoing defense and to bolster NATO,” he added.
On NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Blinken said the U.S. is “doing everything we can. And it’s my responsibility to do everything I can to try diplomatically to prevent a war.”
The Ukrainian defense ministry on Sunday reported further ceasefire violations in the east after a day of heavy weapons fire Saturday.
The ministry said that in the first 11 hours of Sunday, "20 incidents of ceasefire violation by the Russian occupation forces were observed, including 18 incidents when the Russian occupation forces utilized weapons prohibited by the Minsk Agreements."
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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