The fact of the matter is we've seen that that force has been unable to defend the country.

Antony Blinken

It’s dangerous. It adds to the risk of miscalculation. It needs to be avoided, we've assessed President Putin's directive and his statements, and at this time, we see no reason to change our own.

They’re destroying critical infrastructure which supplies millions of people across Ukraine with drinking water, with electricity, with gas to keep from freezing to death, these aren’t military targets; they are places where civilians work and families live.

Reports of Russia’s human rights abuses and violations of international humanitarian law mount by the hour. Russian strikes are hitting schools, hospitals and residential buildings.

One of the things that Vladimir Putin has done, starting back in 2014 when they first went into Ukraine, seizing Crimea, seizing a part of eastern Ukraine, is to totally alienate the Ukrainian people from Russia. Before 2014, actually, Russia was pretty popular in Ukraine.

Over – whether it’s in the near term, whether it’s in the medium term, whether it’s in the long term, I am convinced that democracy and the independence of Ukraine is going to prevail.

Is it a possibility that Putin goes beyond Ukraine?Sure, it’s a possibility, but there’s something very powerful standing in the way of that. That’s something we call Article 5 of NATO. That means an attack on one member of NATO is an attack on all members of NATO. The President’s been very clear that we will defend every inch of NATO territory. I think that’s the most powerful deterrent against President Putin going beyond Ukraine.

I’m convinced he’s going to try to do that, one of the things that Vladimir Putin has done, starting back in 2014 when they first went into Ukraine, seizing Crimea, seizing a part of eastern Ukraine, is to totally alienate the Ukrainian people from Russia. Before 2014, actually, Russia was pretty popular in Ukraine.

Russian missiles and bombs will drop across Ukraine. Communications will be jammed. Cyberattacks will shut down key Ukrainian institutions, after that, Russian tanks and soldiers will advance on key targets that have already been identified and mapped out in detailed plans.

Collectively they hold more than $ 80 billion in assets, these measures freeze their assets in the United States, prohibit American individuals or businesses from doing any transactions with them, shut them out of the global financial system and foreclose access to the U.S. dollar.

His plan all along has been to invade Ukraine. To control Ukraine and its people. To destroy Ukraine’s democracy, to reclaim Ukraine as a part of Russia.

( President Joe Biden) said that we will, in the event of an invasion, double down on our support for Ukraine, and that means in terms of security assistance, economic assistance, diplomatic assistance, political assistance, humanitarian assistance, you name it.

There is a growing recognition that what is happening in Ukraine matters first and foremost to Ukrainians, but it should matter to everyone in the world, what’s at stake are larger principles that are the foundation of the entire international order established after two World Wars and the Cold War … basic principles that are needed to maintain peace and security.

Russia says its drawing down those forces, we do not see that happening on the ground. Our information indicates clearly that these forces, including ground troops, aircraft, ships, are preparing to launch an attack against Ukraine in the coming days.

First Russia plans to manufacture a pretext for its attack – this could be a violent event that Russia will bring on Ukraine or an outrageous accusation that Russia will level against the Ukrainian government.

Here today we are laying it out in great detail with the hope that in sharing what we know with the world we can influence Russia to abandon the path of warand choose a different path while there is still time.

He could pull it today. He could pull it tomorrow. He could pull it next week.

What we're seeing is no meaningful pullback.

We need to talk about two State Antony Blinken citizens, Paul Whelan and Trevor Reed, who were tourists in Russia, were arrested, convicted without credible evidence, and we again ask Russia to do the right thing and let them come home.

And we are actively engaged in an effort to do that. And I'm not going to share more here because of the obvious sensitivity of it. But we would like to get Paul Whelan and Trevor Reed home as soon as possible.

Unfortunately there's a difference between what Russia says and what it does. And what we're seeing is no meaningful pullback, on the contrary, we continue to see forces, especially forces that would be in the vanguard of any renewed aggression against Ukraine, continuing to be at the border, to mass at the border.