by David Lawder and Katharine Jackson
WASHINGTON, Feb 13 (Reuters) – Several senior U.S. officials said on Sunday they were unable to confirm reports that U.S. intelligence indicates Russia is preparing to invade Ukraine on Wednesday but turn recommended that US nationals leave Ukraine immediately.
Jake Sullivan, White House national security adviser, reiterated that a Russian invasion could begin at any time and that the United States would try to prevent Russia from launching a manipulation operation giving it a pretext to attack. his neighbour.
“We cannot predict the day perfectly but we have been saying now for some time that we are within the window and that an invasion can begin, that a major military operation by Russia in Ukraine can begin any moment now. . That includes the week ahead before the end of the Olympics,” Jake Sullivan told CNN.
The Beijing Winter Olympics are due to end on February 20.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby also declined to confirm reports of an invasion on Wednesday.
“I am not in a position to confirm this information,” he told Fox News, adding that Russia was likely to launch a military operation at any time.
“And again, these assessments come from a variety of sources. And not, not exclusively, from intelligence services but also from what we observe in broad daylight,” explained John Kirby. “More than 100,000 troops continue to be deployed facing Ukraine’s border.”
Jake Sullivan and John Kirby also renewed the call for Americans to leave Ukraine.
“What we’ve seen in the last ten days or so is an acceleration of this buildup and movement of Russian forces of all kinds near the border of Ukraine so that we can launch a military operation very, very quickly,” Jake Sullivan said.
The United States and its allies, he added, “will defend every inch of NATO territory.”
President Joe Biden, who spoke on Saturday by telephone with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, was to do the same on Sunday with Ukrainian Volodimir Zelensky.
(Report David Lawder, French version Marc Angrand)