Britons are calling for people to leave the country
Biden believes attack on Ukraine has been decided
2/11/2022, 9:02 p.m
Britain and the Netherlands are calling on their citizens to leave Ukraine immediately. Earlier, the US President warned all Americans that in the event of a Russian invasion, evacuation would not be possible. According to media reports, Biden now believes an attack on the country has been decided.
US President Joe Biden has told NATO and EU leaders that the US now believes a Russian invasion of Ukraine is imminent. This is reported by the British “Guardian” and several US media. Biden is convinced that Russian President Vladimir Putin has decided on the attack, which diplomatic sources say could take place in the next few days, the newspaper writes. Biden’s call to allies therefore followed directly after a meeting in the White House at which the latest information about the Russian military deployment was discussed. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken previously said there were “very worrying signs of a Russian escalation.”
Immediately after the US President’s call, Britain called on its citizens to leave the country as soon as possible, according to the Guardian. “We urge British nationals in Ukraine to leave the country via commercial routes as long as they are available,” the Foreign Office said in London in the evening. The government also strongly advises against all trips to the ex-Soviet republic.
The deployment of Russian troops on the Ukrainian border has increased the danger of military action, it was said in justification. That is why other employees of the embassy would also be withdrawn. Earlier, British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said during a visit to Moscow that Russian troop strength on the Ukrainian border would allow an immediate attack on the neighboring country.
The Netherlands, Canada and Israel also organize departures
In view of the Ukraine conflict, the Netherlands is also urgently advising its nationals to leave the country if their presence there is not really necessary. The Dutch ambassador in Kiev recommended this to compatriots at an online meeting, the broadcaster NOS reported. For Dutch people who want to leave Ukraine, the embassy is setting up an emergency base in the west of the country in Lviv near the Polish border, for example for issuing emergency documents and other help.
Biden had previously made similar statements. In an interview with the US broadcaster NBC, the US President said that all US citizens should leave the country “now”. Russian military action in Ukraine could disrupt travel across the country, Canada’s foreign ministry said, and also called on its citizens to leave the country. Israel announced plans to fly family members of its diplomats out of Ukraine.
Germany is waiting
So far, Germany has only warned against unnecessary trips to Ukraine and strongly advises against going to areas in the east controlled by pro-Russian separatists and to the Crimean peninsula annexed by Russia. “Against the background of the current movements of Russian military units near the Ukrainian borders”, travelers should inform themselves about the security situation, it is also said.
In a switching conference on the Ukraine crisis in the afternoon, the western allies once again emphasized their determination to react to a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine with rapid and far-reaching sanctions. In the evening, German government circles said that the participants from the European Union and NATO assessed the situation as “very, very serious”. They want to continue trying to persuade Russia to de-escalate with diplomatic efforts. “It is important to prevent a war in Europe,” wrote government spokesman Steffen Hebestreit on Twitter.
Biden exchanged views on the Ukraine conflict with Chancellor Olaf Scholz and other allies on Friday afternoon. Also invited were EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, EU Council President Charles Michel, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Poland’s President Andrzej Duda, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, and Italy’s Prime Minister Mario Draghi Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.