Blinken Hypes Threat of Russian Invasion in Ukraine Visit

Blinken will meet with his Russian counterpart in Geneva Friday

Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Ukraine on Wednesday and hyped up the threat of a potential Russian invasion, warning Russia could attack on “very short notice.”

“We know that there are plans in place to increase that force even more on very short notice, and that gives President Putin the capacity, also on very short notice, to take further aggressive action against Ukraine,” Blinken told the staff of the US Embassy in Kyiv.

Since November, the US has been warning Russia is plotting to invade Ukraine. Moscow has denied the accusation, but Biden administration officials continue to make the claim just about every day.

Blinken met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and other Ukrainian officials and promised more US support. While Blinken was in Kyiv, the State Department announced that the US is giving Ukraine an additional $200 million in military aid.

Blinken will be in Berlin on Thursday and is set to meet with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Geneva on Friday. Despite the harsh rhetoric, the US and Russia have managed to continue a dialogue. President Biden said Wednesday that there is “room to work” with the Russians on Ukraine and the security guarantees President Vladimir Putin is seeking.

Author: Dave DeCamp

Dave DeCamp is the news editor of Antiwar.com, follow him on Twitter @decampdave.