President Biden on Friday said he believes Russian President Vladimir Putin has made up his mind to move forward with an invasion of Ukraine.
“As of this moment I’m convinced he’s made the decision. We have reason to believe that,” Biden told reporters at the White House after delivering an update on the threat of a Russian invasion.
“You are convinced President Putin is going to invade Ukraine. Is that what you just said a few moments ago?” a reporter asked moments later.
“Yes, I did,” Biden said, adding that diplomacy was still on the table if Moscow chose to deescalate.
Biden and White House officials have for weeks said they did not believe Putin had made a final decision about whether to carry out an invasion into Ukraine even as Russia amassed troops and military equipment along the Ukrainian border. But Biden indicated Friday that had changed and that the U.S. and allies were preparing for a Russian attack in the coming days.
“We have reason to believe the Russian forces are planning to and intend to attack Ukraine in the coming week, in the coming days. We believe that they will target Ukraine’s capital of Kyiv, a city of 2.8 million innocent people,” Biden said in prepared remarks.
“We’re calling out Russia’s plans loudly and repeatedly not because we want a conflict, but because we’re doing everything in our power to remove any reason that Russia may give to justify invading Ukraine and prevent them from moving,” he added.
Biden held a call earlier Friday with leaders from Europe and Canada to discuss the ongoing threat of a Russian invasion. Vice President Harris is scheduled to meet Saturday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the Munich Security Conference in Germany.
Biden and other White House officials have said it is up to Zelensky whether he wants to leave the country amid the threat of a potential Russian attack.
Despite Russian claims in recent days that it was moving forces away from Ukraine’s border, the U.S. and NATO said that Moscow has added troops. Russia is also engaging in military exercises in Belarus, compounding the threat.
Biden on Friday called out Russian claims he said were being used to create a pretext for an invasion. He cited the shelling of a Ukrainian kindergarten classroom by Russian-backed separatists and “fabricated claims” of an impending Ukrainian attack on Russia.
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"As of this moment I’m convinced he’s made the decision. We have reason to believe that," Biden told reporters at the White House after delivering an update on the threat of a Russian invasion.https://t.co/813x73FdRm
— The Hill (@thehill) February 18, 2022
Reporter: "Do you have any indication about whether President Putin has made a decision? […] Do you feel confident that he hasn't made that decision already?"
.@POTUS: "As of this moment, I'm convinced he's made the decision." https://t.co/u1iY0KEaJT pic.twitter.com/WZ2kXKbbId
— The Hill (@thehill) February 18, 2022
Reporter: "To be clear, you are convinced that President Putin is going to invade Ukraine?"
President Biden: "Yes."
Reporter: "What reason do you have to believe [that]?"
President Biden: "We have significant intelligence capability." https://t.co/pS2ZE2pi5V pic.twitter.com/NLX9Z98Gzn
— The Hill (@thehill) February 18, 2022
SCOOP: Russia is building lists of high-profile political opponents to capture or kill if it invades Ukraine, four people familiar with U.S. intelligence tell @ak_mack, @RobbieGramer & me.
The U.S. has also been startled by how detailed the lists are.https://t.co/YQlYVM8DQT
— Jack Detsch (@JackDetsch) February 18, 2022
JUST IN: Kremlin says repeated predictions of Ukraine invasion may have "detrimental consequences" https://t.co/UyWF4aNLKp pic.twitter.com/5cW06nCq6p
— The Hill (@thehill) February 20, 2022
Biden has given Putin a brilliant off-ramp. By announcing to the world that Putin plans to invade, Putin can now embarrass Biden by not invading and blaming the West for beating the "drums of war." Take it Mr. Putin. Embarras my president! (Small price to pay for avoiding war.)
— Michael McFaul (@McFaul) February 19, 2022
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