In response to growing fears that a Russian invasion of Ukraine could take place in the coming days, the US has moved some of its forces out of Ukraine and ordered the evacuation of its embassy staff.
US officials are increasingly concerned about the safety of Americans in Ukraine, as evidenced by these moves.
According to Pentagon press secretary John Kirby, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ordered Florida’s National Guard members out of Ukraine and repositioned them “elsewhere in Europe.” 160 soldiers were in Ukraine in November on a training assignment.
“They are departing Ukraine and will reposition elsewhere in Europe. The Secretary made this decision out of an abundance of caution — with the safety and security of our personnel foremost in mind — and informed by the State Department’s guidance on U.S. personnel in Ukraine,” Kirby said in a statement reported on CNN.
The Pentagon is still supporting Ukraine’s military, despite this order.
“This repositioning does not signify a change in our determination to support Ukraine’s Armed Forces, but will provide flexibility in assuring allies and deterring aggression,” Kirby stated.
According to a State Department travel advisory released on Saturday, the State Department “ordered the departure of most US direct hire employees from Embassy Kyiv due to the continued threat of Russian military action.”
Despite the suspension of consular services, the letter emphasized that a small diplomatic presence would be maintained in Lviv, located about 50 miles from the Poland border, to respond to emergencies.
Several countries are also recommending citizens leave Ukraine and downgrading their diplomatic presence.
During a conference call with reporters Saturday morning, a senior State Department official said it’s past time for US citizens to leave Ukraine as there are limits to what the US can do for them in a war zone, which is “inherently volatile” and “extremely dangerous.”
“Once a country or region becomes an active conflict zone we have very little ability to help our fellow citizens,” the official expressed.
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Before Joe Biden and Vladimir Putin spoke on Saturday, the State Department increased the urgency of its warnings that Russia may soon invade.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke beforehand with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and addressed “acute and shared concerns” over Russian military aggression against Ukraine, according to State Department spokesman Ned Price.
Blinken tweeted that he “reiterated that further Russian aggression would be met with a resolute, massive, and united Transatlantic response.”
Additionally, Blinken “emphasized the priority that we place on safety of American citizens, diplomatic personnel and our embassy facility,” another senior State Department official told reporters traveling with Blinken on Saturday.
Also, Lavrov “denied that Russia has any intention to invade Ukraine,” the official said.
On Friday, US national security adviser Jake Sullivan warned a Russian assault on Ukraine could begin soon, beginning with aerial bombings and missile attacks. He advised all Americans to depart the country for their own safety as quickly as possible.
“Any American in Ukraine should leave as soon as possible, and in any event in the next 24 to 48 hours,” Sullivan stated.
“We obviously cannot predict the future, we don’t know exactly what is going to happen. But the risk is now high enough and the threat is now immediate enough that this is what prudence demands.”
“If a Russian attack on Ukraine proceeds, it is likely to begin with aerial bombings and missile attacks that could obviously kill civilians without regard to their nationality. A subsequent ground invasion would obviously involve the onslaught of a massive force,” he added.
The warning came just before a senior defense official told CNN that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin had ordered 3,000 more soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division to deploy to Poland, joining the 1,700 already there. The soldiers are there to help Americans who may try to leave Ukraine.
In response to Sullivan’s remarks, Russia slammed Western countries and media for launching a “large-scale disinformation campaign” over a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine, saying Friday that they were doing so “to divert attention from their own aggressive actions.”
“At the end of 2021 and the beginning of 2022, the global information space faced a media campaign unprecedented in its scale and sophistication, the purpose of which is to convince the world community that the Russian Federation is preparing an invasion of the territory of Ukraine,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry said on Friday.
Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, tried to downplay concerns about an invasion on Saturday.
Zelensky, who viewed military exercises near Kherson in southern Ukraine, emphasized the need to “analyze all the information” regarding threats at the borders.
“And the truth is that we have different information. And now the best friend for enemies is panic in our country. And all this information helps only to create panic, doesn’t help us,” Zelensky told.
State Department Has Been Calling Americans in UkraineAs the US continues to urge US citizens to leave the country, US State Department officials have contacted Americans in Ukraine to know if they plan to leave. The State Department called missionary Lee Humerian on Friday to ask if he was planning to leave Ukraine with his family. Humerian lives in Ukraine with his family and works as a missionary.
According to Humerian, the official asked whether he read the latest State Department email encouraging Americans to leave. He informed the official that he had read it and he had no plans to leave.
Meanwhile, the State Department has registered this American with its program to track Americans abroad. A comment from the State Department was not immediately available.
Sullivan added that it’s unclear whether Putin will invade Ukraine despite those warnings.
“I want to be crystal clear. A final decision has not been taken by President Putin, but we have a sufficient level of concern based on what we’re see on the ground and what our intelligence analysts have picked up that we’re sending this clear message and it remains a message that we have now been sending for some time. And it is an urgent message because we’re in an urgent situation,” Sullivan conveyed.
During a conference call with reporters Saturday, a State Department official stated that a “couple thousand” Americans have told them that they remain in Ukraine and a “substantial number” of them don’t want to leave, regardless of potential dangers.
“We’re in active contact with them to understand whether or not they are planning to leave,” the official said, as the department continues to urge the Americans to leave the country.
The State Department official said the US respects the decision of the Americans who want to stay but encourages them to reconsider that choice.
“There’s another substantial part of that group that have said they’re choosing to remain in Ukraine, and even while we strongly urge them to reconsider and advise them to leave because of the dangers that we foresee,” the official explained.
“We fully respect their right to make their own choices, and, you know people have, there are many reasons why people might resist leaving, including if they’re long-term residents of Ukraine.”
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Some of the Americans are in the process of leaving the country or have already left. If they want to leave, the State Department helps them.
According to the official, the State Department has spoken to only a “very small number” of US citizens who are unable to leave the country. According to the official, they have requested help getting new passports or visas for their non-American relatives.
Blinken said Friday that the US believes a Russian invasion of Ukraine could begin “at any time,” including during the Olympics currently underway in Beijing. Moreover, he said the United States continues to see “very troubling signs of Russian escalation, including new forces at the Ukrainian border.”
“We’re continuing to draw down our embassy,” Blinken told reporters on Friday.
“We will continue that process. And we’ve also been very clear that any American citizens who remain in Ukraine should leave now.”