The New York Post reports that the Biden administration is getting ready to evacuate the U.S. embassy in Kyiv.
This comes amid growing concerns that a Russian invasion of Ukraine is imminent.
The forthcoming evacuation
This latest evacuation announcement is expected to come from the Biden administration on Saturday. The reader may remember that the Biden administration already ordered the families of staff to evacuate last month.
On Friday, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan urged those Americans still in Ukraine to leave the country within “24 to 48 hours.”
He encouraged them to do so, saying:
If a Russian attack on Ukraine proceeds, it is likely to begin with aerial bombing and missile attacks that could obviously kill civilians without regard to their nationality. A subsequent ground invasion would involve the onslaught of a massive force, with virtually no notice communications to arrange a departure could be severed and commercial transit halted. No one would be able to count on air or rail or road departures once military action got underway.
The New York Post reports that, with the evacuation of the U.S. embassy, “some diplomats will be relocated to the far western portion of Ukraine, near the border with NATO ally Poland, so the US retains a diplomatic presence in the country.”
Background
The Biden administration believes that there is a “very distinct possibility” that Russia will invade Ukraine within the coming days.
Russia, for months now, has built up a military presence at its border with Ukraine attempting to prevent the country from joining forces with NATO. The West, including the United States, has been trying to get Russia to stand down, but negotiations have reached a standstill will both sides refusing to back down.
Now, the world is watching to see whether or not Russian President Vladimir Putin will go ahead and follow through on his threat to invade Ukraine.
The latest
President Biden is expected to speak to Putin, once again, on Saturday in an attempt to get Russia to stand down.
Biden and the West’s main strategy has been one of deterrence. But, the deterrent has been in financial terms rather than military terms, with Biden threatening severe sanctions should Russia invade.
It remains to be seen whether this will be enough to hold Putin off, especially now that he explicitly has the backing of China.
