“When Americans and Russians start shooting at each other, we’re in a very different world,” he said. “American citizens should leave, they should leave now. Canada makes similar recommendations. “Be prepared to take cover.”
The Kremlin is accused of preparing a new military operation against Ukraine, after the annexation of Crimea in 2014. Accusations rejected by Russia, which claims to just want to ensure its security in the face of hostility from Kiev and NATO .
Maneuvers in Belarus
US B-52 strategic bombers arrived in the UK on Thursday to take part in a “long-planned” exercise with NATO allies, the US Air Force said. Four US Navy destroyers are also to take part in a naval exercise in the Sixth Fleet area, which covers the Mediterranean.
These announcements come at a time when, in addition to some 100,000 men massed on the Ukrainian border, the Russian and Belarusian armies are carrying out major maneuvers in Belarus, a former Soviet republic bordering Ukraine, which has remained an ally of Moscow. .
The number of soldiers and equipment participating in these exercises has not been officially provided, but Westerners claim that 30,000 Russian soldiers have been deployed in Belarus as part of this exercise.
Russia also announced on Thursday the arrival in Crimea of six warships for upcoming maneuvers in the Black Sea, which borders southern Ukraine. The deployment of these soldiers was immediately qualified by the Ukrainian presidency as a means of “psychological pressure” used by Moscow.
Vain diplomatic efforts?
Against the backdrop of a war of nerves and intensified diplomatic efforts in recent weeks, including President Emmanuel Macron’s visits to Moscow and Kiev, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz for his part warned Russia that it should not – estimate the “unity” and “determination” of Europeans.
A few hours before Joe Biden’s statements, the American ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield, urged China “to encourage the Russians” to make the right choices in the Ukrainian crisis. On Twitter, his Chinese counterpart Zhang Jun immediately reacted: “Stop stirring up tension”.