Biden predicted that Russia would invade Ukraine but warned Putin to face “severe economic consequences” from the United States and Western allies if it invades Ukraine.
Biden predicted that Russia would invade Ukraine but warned Putin to face “severe economic consequences” from the United States and Western allies if it invades Ukraine.
The “Severe Economic Consequences’ if Russia Invades
Washington — White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said in an interview with “Face the Nation”, stating that in terms of sanctions, what the US has laid out is a very clear message to the Russians, and already done so in concert and unison with the allies that if they do further invade Ukraine, there will be severe economic consequences and a price to pay. Furthermore, if it founds out that Russia is pummeling Ukraine with cyberattacks, and if that continues in the future, the US together with its allies will work on an appropriate response.
The Biden administration has been seeking a diplomatic response to Russia’s build-up of tanks and over 100,000 troops along Ukraine’s eastern border, and it has been clear that it favors this path. Moreover, last week, the U.S. and Russian diplomats gathered in Geneva, Switzerland, to attempt to calm the Ukraine security crisis. However, Sullivan still said that if Russia does take military action, the U.S. will “take actions that will hit against to their economic, that go at their strategic position in Europe, that increase NATO’s solidarity.
The Threat of a Possible Russian Invasion
The possibility of a Russian invasion of Ukraine has grown more intensify, and U.S. officials believe that Russian President Vladimir Putin could order military action as soon as this month or next month. While Russia has sent a conflicting signal regarding a possible invasion, that has not indicated whether there will be a reduction of troop presence, in Eastern Europe, among other security guarantees.
Amid the escalation tensions towards the Ukrainian government, servers were hit with a cyberattack late last week, resulting in the closing of official websites. Ukrainian Ambassador to the U.S. Oksana Markarova told CBS News hours before the cyberattacks, that the country believes such an attack would occur before Putin’s military engage in serious military combat.
According to Sullivan, the Biden administration has been sending warnings for months that cyberattacks could be part of a “broad-based Russian effort to escalate in Ukraine, and the U.S. has been supporting the Ukrainian government to strengthen their defenses.
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