The drumbeat of war between Russia and Ukraine reached a deafening crescendo Friday, with the United States reportedly convinced that a full scale Russian invasion of the former Soviet satellite nation could begin as early as next week.
Multiple outlets reported Friday that the United States has concluded that Russian President Vladimir Putin intends to move forward with his Ukrainian invasion plans, just one day after Russian armed forces began engaging in massive military exercises in nearby Belarus. According to PBS NewsHour’s Nick Schifrin, who initially broke news of the Western officials’ conclusion, the escalation would likely begin with a bombardment campaign coupled with expansive cyberattacks. After several days, officials believe, Russia would launch a full-scale ground campaign to invade. At a press briefing Friday afternoon, National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan declined to comment on specific intelligence to suggest the invasion was inevitable, and insisted that a final decision was still forthcoming, but nevertheless cautioned that should Putin give the order to proceed, it would likely occur before the Olympic Games in China were over — a sentiment already shared earlier this week by Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
