Ukraine crisis: Biden and Putin to talk after latest US warnings of Russian invasion
Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Joe Biden are to hold a high-stakes telephone call on Saturday as tensions over a possibly imminent invasion of Ukraine escalated sharply the day before.
Before talking to Biden, Putin is also to have a call with French President Emmanuel Macron. The two met in Moscow earlier in the week to try to resolve the crisis.
Russia has massed troops near the Ukraine border and sent troops to neighbouring Belarus for joint exercises. Still, the Kremlin insistently denies that it intends to launch an offensive against Kyiv.
Adding to the sense of crisis, the Pentagon ordered an additional 3,000 US troops to Poland to reassure allies.
Biden has said the US military would not enter a war in Ukraine, but he has promised severe economic sanctions against Moscow in concert with international allies.
The timing of any possible Russian military action remains a crucial question.
According to a US official familiar with the findings, the US acquired intelligence that Russia is looking at Wednesday as a target date.
The official, who was not authorized to speak publicly and did so only on condition of anonymity, would not say how definitive the intelligence was, and the White House publicly underscored that the US does not know with certainty whether Putin is committed to invasion.
However, US officials said anew that Russia's buildup of offensive air, land and sea firepower near Ukraine had reached the point where it could invade on short notice.
Earlier, the US State Department ordered families of US embassy staffers in Kyiv to leave. Still, it had left it to the discretion of nonessential personnel if they wanted to depart.
The White House also urged all US citizens in Ukraine to leave,
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