White House warns of ‘immediate’ threat

Russians show acceleration of troop buildup at the border with Ukraine

By Katie Rogers, Eric Schmitt and Julian E. Barnes

The New York Times

WASHINGTON » The Biden administration warned Friday that President Vladimir Putin of Russia could mount a major assault on Ukraine at any time, having built up formidable land, sea and air forces on three sides of its smaller neighbor.

U.S. intelligence o cials had initially thought Putin was prepared to wait until the end of the Winter Olympics in Beijing before possibly ordering an o ensive, to avoid antagonizing President

Xi Jinping of China, a critical ally. In recent days, they say, the timeline began moving up, an acceleration that Biden administration officials began publicly acknowledging Friday.

“We continue to see signs of Russian escalation, including new forces arriving at the Ukrainian border,” Jake Sullivan, President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, told reporters Friday, adding that an invasion could begin “during the Olympics,” which are scheduled to end Feb. 20.

U.S. o cials still do not know whether Putin has decided to invade, Sullivan insisted. “We are ready either

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way,” he said. “Whatever happens next, the West is more united than it has been in years.”

The United States has picked up intelligence that Russia is discussing next Wednesday as the target date for the start of military action, o cials said, acknowledging the possibility that mentioning a particular date could be part of a Russian disinformation e ort.

The combination of the Russian troop movements and the new information about a possible date helped to trigger the flurry of diplomatic activity and public warnings by the NATO allies Friday.

Antony Blinken, the secretary of state, told reporters at a news conference in Melbourne, Australia, that an

“invasion could begin at any time. And, to be clear, that includes during the Olympics.”

Blinken added that U.S. officials “continue to see very troubling signs of Russian escalation, including new forces arriving at the Ukrainian border.”

The United States has ruled out sending troops to defend Ukraine but has increased deployments to NATO member countries in Eastern Europe, and Friday the Pentagon ordered 3,000 more soldiers to Poland.

Putin and Biden will speak by phone today, according to the Kremlin and a White House spokesperson, and the Kremlin said Putin would also speak again with President Emmanuel Macron of France. The Kremlin said