Tensions simmer in Ukraine-Russia border crisis

A call between US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday “did not go well,” as the pair disagree on the “risk levels” of a Russian attack, a senior Ukrainian official told CNN.

The White House, however, disputed the official’s account, warning that anonymous sources were “leaking falsehoods.” They did state that Biden warned Zelensky an imminent invasion is a “distinct possibility.”

On the call, which the Ukrainian official described as “long and frank,” Biden warned his Ukrainian counterpart that a Russian attack may be imminent, saying that an invasion was now virtually certain once the ground freezes later in February, according to the official.?

Zelensky, however, restated his position that the threat from Russia remains “dangerous but ambiguous,” saying it’s not certain that an attack will take place, the official added.

National Security Council spokeswoman Emily Horne, however, disputed the senior Ukrainian official’s description of the call.

The frank discussion between the two leaders comes as the US and NATO continue to brace for the prospect of a Russian invasion. Though they have stressed the need for diplomacy, the White House has warned an invasion could be imminent as tens of thousands of Russian troops have been amassed on the Ukrainian border.

The Biden-Zelensky call lasted an hour and 20 minutes Thursday, according to a US national security official, and was highlighted by the extensive issues the two leaders had to discuss amid the Russian troop buildup. The official described the call as “long and serious,” but “productive,” as Biden and Zelensky discussed Russia’s recent aggressions.

The Biden administration has called for the first UN Security Council (UNSC) meeting on the situation along the Russia-Ukraine border, US ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield said in a statement on Thursday.

The meeting?is set to?take place on Monday.?

It will be the first venue at the UN where American and Russian officials both speak about what is happening, as Russia?shows no signs of de-escalation.

“Today, after weeks of close consultation with Ukraine and partners on the Security Council, the United States called an open meeting of the Security Council to discuss a matter of crucial importance to international peace and security: Russia’s threatening behavior against Ukraine and the build-up of Russian troops on Ukraine’s borders and in Belarus,” Thomas-Greenfield wrote.

“More than 100,000 Russian troops are deployed on the Ukrainian border and Russia is engaging in other destabilizing acts aimed at Ukraine, posing a clear threat to international peace and security and the UN Charter,” Thomas-Greenfield wrote.

“As we continue our relentless pursuit of diplomacy to de-escalate tensions in the face of this serious threat to European and global peace and security, the UN Security Council is a crucial venue for diplomacy,” she added.

President Biden’s phone call with Ukrainian President Zelensky lasted for an hour and 20 minutes Thursday, highlighting the extensive issues the two leaders had to discuss amid a Russian troop buildup on Ukraine’s border.

A national security official described the call as “long and serious” but “productive,” as Biden and Zelensky discussed Russia’s recent aggressions.

Biden told Zelensky that US officials feel an invasion could potentially happen in February but did not say that it definitely would, the official said.?

Earlier in the day, another source from the US side said there is a recognition in the White House that Zelensky has “multiple audiences” and is trying to balance them.

Here is the White House readout of President Biden’s call with Ukrainian President Zelensky.

As Republican and Democratic senators continue to make progress in their efforts to put together a comprehensive Russian sanctions bill, a pair of sources are telling CNN the bill could be ready by the time lawmakers return to work next week.

The bill would include robust economic and technological sanctions against Russia as well as provisions to provide Ukraine with additional weapons support and supplies.

Lawmakers are looking to bridge the long-held divide between Republicans and Democrats as to when sanctions ought to be deployed. According to a source close to the process, the legislation would include not only immediate sanctions but also more crushing and far-reaching sanctions?to be deployed if Russia went through with an invasion or tried to topple Ukraine’s government.

One area the lawmakers are looking at is that of a technological sanction, on items like semi-conductor chips, something for which Russia heavily depends upon the US.

Lawmakers are also eyeing a smaller bipartisan bill from Republican Sen. John Cornyn and Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen that would enhance the President’s lend-lease authority. This would more easily and swiftly allow arms to be sent to Ukraine in the event of an invasion.

Democrats have long said they support sanctions as a deterrent but largely prefer to hold off on immediately issuing them so as to leave room for diplomacy. Republicans, meanwhile, have been fighting to immediately issue sanctions as a preemptive threat against Russian President Vladimir Putin. This bill would bridge that political divide by enacting smaller sanctions immediately, while also allowing for further, more robust sanctions should invasions occur.

CNN’s Manu Raju reported earlier this week that Menendez, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, convened a meeting Monday evening with a small group of bipartisan senators in hopes of making this final push. Since that time, members have been communicating in smaller groups with another potential meeting possible by the end of the week.

The same member told CNN there will probably be some mention of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline in the legislation, but the negotiators are being careful not to relitigate the bitter disagreements between the two parties on that issue.

It’s also not clear at this point whether the administration will back the bill the senators are working on.

Russian?BMP-3 infantry fighting vehicles participate in drills held by the armed?forces?of the Southern Military District at the Kadamovsky range in the Rostov region, Russia on Thursday, January 27.

The Defense Department said that the buildup of Russian forces near the Ukrainian border has increased “in the last 24 hours.”

Kirby said the buildup has been “not dramatic,” but “also not sclerotic.”

View of pipe systems and shut-off devices at the gas receiving station of the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea pipeline in Lubmin, Germany in early January.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that “nothing is off the table” when it comes to sanctions — including killing the mooted

Nord Stream 2 pipeline and removing Russia from SWIFT, a high security network that connect thousands of financial institutions around the world — should Moscow invade Ukraine.

“I want to be very clear — nothing is off of the table,” von der Leyen told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour in an exclusive interview when pressed on whether the EU would axe the prospective energy deal.?

“The commission is responsible?for designing, shaping and developing the?sanctions,” the EU commission president told CNN.

Von der Leyen pointed to Russia’s reliance on trade with the European Union and said that the EU held significant economic leverage.??

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will hold a call with President Biden today, his office told CNN.

The conversation is expected to be a “logical continuation of close cooperation, coordination of actions and evidence of support to Ukraine from its reliable partner,” Zelensky’s spokesperson Serhiy Nikiforov said on Facebook.

“The leaders can be expected to address issues of peace, security, including energy, defence cooperation, macro-financial support, and anti-oligarchic reform. However, the list of topics is not exhaustive,” he said.

A source familiar with Zelensky’s thinking told CNN that Ukraine’s leader is expected to air his concerns about the public rhetoric the US and its allies have engaged in surrounding a potential war between Ukraine and Russia.

Zelensky has been particularly concerned about the US’ rhetoric that war could be “imminent” — a word White House press secretary Jen Psaki used earlier this week to describe the US’ assessment of Russia’s plans — and the recent disclosures of intelligence to US media, the source said, which “is causing panic and economic disaster for Ukraine.”?

Zelensky is expected to convey to Biden that he believes the US and its allies have to be more careful with their messaging surrounding the conflict, the source added.?

Ukrainian officials have been similarly unhappy about the US’ decision to order the evacuation of families from the US Embassy in Kyiv, CNN previously reported, which Zelensky warned beforehand would be an “overreaction.”?

Additionally, Zelensky hopes to brief Biden on progress made during talks between Ukrainian and Russian officials in Paris this week, which was “very positive” and is being met with “cautious optimism” by the Ukrainian government, the source said.

It will be the second conversation the presidents have had this month?and the third in two months, Zelensky’s spokesperson said.

The White House confirmed the call would be occurring this afternoon and a readout of the conversation is expected.

CNN’s Maegan Vazquez contributed reporting to this post.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends a joint live broadcast of NTV and Star TV channels in Ankara, Turkey, on January 26.

Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit Turkey for annual talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdo?an, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday.

“President Putin gratefully accepted this invitation,” Peskov said. “They agreed that as soon as there is a resolution on a) the epidemiological situation and b) schedules, he will definitely take advantage of this invitation.”

No date has been arranged yet, but Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt ?avu?o?lu told reporters Thursday he had been informed by the Kremlin it will be after Putin returns from the Beijing Olympic Games, which begin Feb. 4.

Speaking in a TV interview broadcast live on Turkish news channel NTV Wednesday, Erdo?an invited Putin for a summit as part of Turkey’s High Level Strategic Cooperation Council Mechanisms, which it shares with both Russia and Ukraine.?

Erdo?an also offered to mediate talks between Russia and Ukraine as global efforts continue to de-escalate tensions.

Erdo?an warned that “war between two countries” will cause harm to the region and reaffirmed Turkey – a NATO member – will continue to support Ukraine’s territorial integrity.

“It is our greatest wish that the efforts of NATO on this issue will be successful. Our country has supported Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty from the very beginning,” he said.?

“We had a clear stance against Russia when it targets Ukraine’s territorial integrity such as Crimea annexation. Our attitude is not going to change. I hope that Russia will not conduct an armed attack or occupation of Ukraine. This is not rational for Russia and [the] region,” Erdo?an continued.

NATO — short for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization — is a non-aggressive European and North American defense alliance set up to promote peace and stability and to safeguard the security of its members.

It was created as the Cold War escalated. Its aim was to protect Western European countries from the threat posed by the Soviet Union and to counter the spread of Communism after World War II. Over the decades, the alliance has grown, with 30 members today.

What might it do in Ukraine?

NATO already had troops in eastern Europe before the most recent increase in tensions with Russia, but it has boosted its presence there in recent weeks.

According to NATO, there are currently four multinational battalion-size battlegroups in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland on a rotational basis.

These battlegroups are led by the UK, Canada, Germany and the US.?NATO said?on Jan. 7 they are “robust and combat-ready forces.”

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said the alliance is prepared to rapidly reinforce that presence further by sending additional forces and capabilities into the area.

Several NATO countries have started sending weapons and ammunition to Ukraine.

Why is Germany being criticized?

Berlin has come under criticism recently for its policy of not exporting weapons to crisis areas.

Germany has so far refused to send arms to Ukraine, promising instead to give Kyiv a field hospital, medical training and 5,000 military helmets.

Germany’s complicated history means its governments have always been cautious about military spending, and the idea of getting directly involved in a conflict is a difficult one to sell there. It has also been criticized for failing to reach the 2% GDP spending target, along with other countries.

CNN’s Frederik Pleitgen and Nadine Schmidt in Berlin contributed reporting.

Annalena Baerbock, German Foreign Minister, photographed during the virtual participation in the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate in Berlin, Germany, on January 27.

An undersea pipeline, Nord Stream 2, that is set to deliver gas from Russia to Germany has a point of vulnerability for Germany as tensions simmer on the Russia-Ukraine border.

The 1,200-km (750-mile) pipeline was completed in September and is now?awaiting final certification. But even though the pipeline isn’t operational yet, it has already acted as a huge wedge between the traditional allies at a time of?huge tensions between Russia and the West.

“Given that Russia’s aim is to split everybody, if they’re seeking to break apart unity in the European Union and in?NATO, this pipeline has been a wonderful vessel,” said Kristine Berzina, a senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund of the United States, a nonpartisan research center.

On Thursday, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock warned, “Renewed military action against Ukraine would have massive consequences for Russia.”

“We are working on a strong package of sanctions. In the event of new aggression, the full range of our responses is available — including Nord Stream 2,” Baerbock told lawmakers in the German parliament.

The German Foreign Minister went on to say “this is anything but an easy political time, because it is hard not to see it as a threat when over 100,000 troops with tanks and guns/weapons gather near Ukraine for no comprehensible reason and more troops are being amassed in Belarus.”

You can read more here.

Moscow considers the idea of war between Russia and Ukraine “unacceptable,” Alexey Zaytsev, deputy spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry, told journalists during a briefing on Thursday.

Zaytsev went on to say dialogue with Ukraine in Paris on Wednesday “was not easy” and ended without result. He added he hoped for a different outcome when the four countries – Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France – meet again in Berlin in two weeks.

In the meantime, he called on NATO to cease its interference in Ukraine.

“We hope that the NATO countries will stop … and refrain from interfering in the internal affairs of this country, which should allow the contracting Ukrainian parties to resolve their differences in their dialogue with each other,” he said.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks about Russia and Ukraine during a briefing at the State Department in Washington, DC, on January 26.

China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi discussed the situation in Ukraine with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during a phone call Thursday.

During the call, Blinken “underscored?the global security and economic risks posed by further Russian aggression?against?Ukraine and?conveyed?that?de-escalation?and diplomacy are?the responsible?way forward,” according to State Department?Spokesperson?Ned Price.?

Wang?said that “the security of a country cannot be at the expense of harming other countries’ security, and regional security cannot be guaranteed by strengthening or even expanding military blocs,” adding that “Russia’s reasonable security concerns should be taken seriously and resolved,” according to a statement issued by China’s Foreign Ministry (MOFA).?

He added that parties should “abandon the Cold War mentality” and return to the 2015 Minsk II agreement, which sought?to end fighting in the?Donbas region of Ukraine.?

The two also discussed the upcoming Winter Olympics and Taiwan.?

Irish fishers are set to meet with the Russian ambassador to Ireland to express their concerns over military exercises set to take place off the southwest coast of the country.

The Russian exercises are scheduled for early next month and will last a number of days, reports CNN affiliate Virgin Media News.

The fishermen have raised concerns over environmental damage which could affect their livelihoods.

“These are war games,” Patrick Murphy of the Irish South and West Fish Producers Organisation told Virgin Media News. “They are doing this to send a message but the people that they’re going to hurt the most is our fishing communities.”

Murphy said that boats have been sunk by submarines in the past. “But the damage that we don’t know is the damage to the marine environment,” he added.

Fisherman John D O’Sullivan wondered why Russia had chosen the fertile fishing grounds of the Celtic Shelf to perform the exercises.

“It shouldn’t be allowed to happen on the shelf,” said O’Sullivan. “There’s plenty water west.”

On Tuesday Ireland’s public service broadcaster RTE reported that some fishermen plan to use their boats to “peacefully disrupt” the Russian exercises.

However the Russian ambassador to Ireland Yury Filatov played down the controversy, calling it “hugely overblown.”

Filatov said Irish authorities have been notified about the exercises, which are part of regular training.

“This is not in any way a threat to Ireland,” he said.

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov speaks during a plenary meeting of the Russian State Duma in Moscow on January 26.

The written responses?presented by the United States and NATO to Russia’s security demands fail to address Moscow’s main concerns over the eastward expansion of the military alliance, Russia’s Foreign Minister said Thursday, as fears of a possible invasion of?Ukraine?remain high.

Tensions between Moscow and Kyiv are at their?highest in years, with a large Russian troop build-up near the shared borders of the two former Soviet republics.

Russia has repeatedly denied it is planning an invasion but has argued that NATO support for Ukraine – including increased weapons supplies and military training – constitutes a growing threat on its western flank.

Lavrov explained the US and NATO had previously agreed within the context of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) not to expand at the expense of Russia’s safety.

“We present non-verbal promises, written documents signed by the leaders of all the OSCE countries, including the President of the United States (Istanbul Declaration of 1999, Astana Declaration of 2010), our Western partners have to get out from a more serious situation,” Lavrov explained.

“This principle is clearly stated. It has two main interrelated approaches. First, the right of every state to freely choose military alliances is recognized. Second: the obligation of each state not to strengthen its security at the expense of the security of others,” he added.

“In other words, the right to choose alliances is clearly conditioned by the need to take into account the security interests of any other OSCE state, including the Russian Federation,” Lavrov concluded.

The Russian Foreign Minister conceded the responses by the US and NATO could lead to serious discussions but only on secondary issues.

“There is a reaction there that allows us to count on the beginning of a serious conversation, but on secondary topics,” he said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has read the written responses by both the United States and NATO to its security demands, but the Kremlin says he won’t be rushing to to any conclusions.?

“The President already read the written responses,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists during a conference call on Thursday. “All the papers are with the President. It will take some time to analyse them, we will not rush to any conclusions.”

The Kremlin spokesman said that on the surface Russia’s prime concerns had not been addressed, but refused to give an official definitive answer to the responses presented by the US and NATO.?

“It cannot be said that our considerations were taken into account or that any willingness to take into account our concerns was demonstrated, but, once again I repeat, we will not rush to judgments,” Peskov said.?

“You heard the statement by both the [US] Secretary of State [Antony Blinken] and [NATO Secretary General Jens] Stoltenberg, where they absolutely unequivocally spoke about the rejection of our fundamental concern,” Peskov added, noting there were barely any positive indications. “There are few reasons for optimism, but I would refrain from conceptual assessments.”

Danish Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod (L) and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba give a statement at Christiansborg in Copenhagen, Denmkark, on January 27.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba says it’s Moscow, not Kyiv, which has to make concessions to defuse tensions in the region.

“The logic that Ukraine always has to make concessions in order to prevent Russia from being more aggressive, failed, doesn’t work this way,” Kuleba told journalists during a visit to Copenhagen.

The Ukrainian Foreign Minister went on to say what happens in Ukraine will have repercussions for the West.

“I firmly believe that it’s important for Western countries to succeed in this particular crisis, for the reasons that I mentioned, because in recent years, Russia has been attacking not only Ukraine,” he explained, adding that Russia has been using gas supplies, cyberattacks and other tactics to attack the West.

“These are all parts of the pressure that Russia is putting,” he said.

“So in Ukraine, the fight in Ukraine is not only about Ukraine, it’s really about the ability of the European Union of the West in a broader sense, to defend its principles and defend itself from those who put a challenge who challenge the way of life that the Europeans support.”

A Ukrainian National Guard service member?who killed five people and injured five more at a?machine-building plant?in eastern Ukraine has been detained.

The serviceman opened fire Thursday morning at the?state-owned Southern Yuzhmash Machine-Building Plant in the city?of?Dnipro, in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Ukraine’s Interior Ministry said in a statement.

The plant works with?Ukraine’s?State Space Agency and produces rocket and airspace technology, including missiles systems and space launch vehicles, according to state news agency Ukrinform.?

Ukraine’s Interior Minister?Denys Monastyrsky?said Thursday?that a commission will be set up to “investigate the circumstances that could have led to the actions of a 21-year-old serviceman who was called up to learn how to defend the country and take care of security, not to shoot his colleagues.”

A military medical commission will also evaluate the mental state of the serviceman at the time of the issuing of his weapon permit, he said on his official Facebook page.

“I am convinced that we need to conduct a thorough analysis of how conscript military service is built in the country, what are its advantages and disadvantages and what needs to be radically changed,” Monastyrsky added.

He?said a woman is among the five killed and that doctors are “fighting” for the lives of those injured. The minister also offered his “deepest condolences to the relatives and friends of the victims.”

Employees of the Lider Center for Special Risk Rescue Operations of the Russian Emergencies Ministry carry out disinfection of Leningradsky Railway Station in Moscow, Russia amid the COVID-19 pandemic on January 27.

Russia recorded 88,816 Covid-19 cases on Thursday, a record high for the seventh day in a row, reports Reuters.

The new record is significantly higher than the 74,692 cases reported on Wednesday, and comes as the Omicron coronavirus variant was detected in new regions of the country, according to the news agency.

Russia also reported 665 deaths in the last 24 hours, officials told Reuters.

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin ordered 50% of government employees to work remotely from last Friday.

But there is no talk of lockdown despite the worsening situation, the Kremlin said Monday.

“??Nobody is discussing any lockdowns. We see the dynamics,” said Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba says his country is not planning any offensive actions, but if Russia attacks, it will fight back.

“We are committed to the diplomatic effort at we are ready to engage with Russia at different levels in order to find diplomatic solutions to the conflict,” Kuleba said during a visit to Denmark on Thursday. “However, if Russia decides to fight, we will fight back.”

Kuleba went on to say he believes an invasion is not Moscow’s ‘plan A’, even if Russia continues to amass troops at Ukraine’s borders.

“The number of Russian troops is becoming higher and higher. With every day they bring in more troops,” Kuleba said.

“This includes not only amassing troops but also cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns. This is all happening right now as we speak so our to priority number one is not to allow Russia to succeed in implementing plan A,” he added.

“At this point we think that military operation is something they keep in their back pocket, it’s not something they put ahead of other options,” Kuleba said.

Dmitry Medvedev, chairman of the United Russia Party, deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, holds a meeting of the Presidium of the Russian Presidential Council on Science and Education via a video link from his Gorki, Russia, residence on January 27.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has failed to keep its non-expansion?“promise,” but there should be no war, said Russia’s Security Council Deputy Chairman Dmitry Medvedev on Thursday.

“They promised not to expand NATO, but didn’t keep the promise,” Medvedev said, according to state news agency TASS.

“They say that ‘we did not sign anything.’ But we all know well who and when granted to whom such promises, such assurances,” he added.

“Did they promise not to expand, let’s say, on the territory of the former Soviet Union? They promised it either in this way or another in private talks,” said Medvedev.

“They failed to keep all their promises. They are now encroaching on our state borders,” he added.

“There must be no war in any way, nobody is looking to start the war, and everything must be done to avoid any war. Moreover, on behalf of Russia and supposedly the North Atlantic alliance,” he said.??

Medvedev also added that a war would be “horrifying” and there are people who make money by raising tensions.

A?process of negotiations on security guarantees is the only way to settle the current tensions between Russia, Ukraine and the West, he added.

At a summit in Brussels in 1994 NATO leaders made it clear that they would welcome expansion to the east, and in 1997, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland were invited to begin accession talks.

Russia has made similar claims about NATO before, and the US and NATO have rejected them in the past.

Ukraine’s negotiator Adriy Yermak said discussions with Russia on Wednesday were “substantial but difficult.”

All parties are in support of a permanent ceasefire and Ukraine is ready to negotiate around the clock to prevent war and de-escalate tensions around Ukraine’s border, said Yermak.

“The work continues and I can tell you that Ukraine as usual is ready to negotiate, to meet 24-7,” he said.?

“Because for us, for President Zelensky, for the entire team, the goal of stopping the war, of ending the war and returning our territories – and today that this also includes easing the tensions – the de-escalation around the Ukrainian border, is the priority,” added Yermak.

Negotiators for the two nations met in Paris as part of talks facilitated by France and Germany in the Normandy Format, a group of the four countries that has been trying to broker peace in eastern Ukraine?since 2014.

“We have agreed on the final communique.?I believe that the most important thing is that there is support of all the participants of the Normandy Format, of a permanent ceasefire which must be in effect unconditionally,” said Yermak.

While disagreements remain, there is also a desire to work through them, he added.

Talks between the group would resume in two weeks in Berlin, said Yermak.

A convoy of Russian armored vehicles moves along a highway in Crimea, Russia on Tuesday, January 18

Russia has not yet assembled enough troops for a full-scale invasion into Ukraine, the country’s foreign minister says.

“The number of Russian troops amassed along the border of Ukraine and in occupied territories is large, it poses a threat — a direct threat to Ukraine,” Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov threatened “appropriate response measures” if the West continues its “aggressive line.”

Speaking to reporters in Kyiv, Kuleba noted that Russia could attack Ukraine at any point, as evidenced in the 2014 annexation of Crimea.

However, a complete invasion is less assured as Kuleba says the Russians “lack some important military indicators and systems to conduct such a large full-scale offensive.”

Responding to recent rhetoric predicting a pending conflict, Kuleba added, “we can say 100 times a day invasion is imminent, but this doesn’t change the situation on the ground.”

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has announced that the United States has delivered a written response to Russia with the goal of avoiding a Russian invasion into Ukraine.

The response “sets out a serious diplomatic path forward should Russia choose it,” Blinken told reporters Wednesday.

As the document has been received in Moscow, Blinken says he anticipates conducting a follow-up discussion with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in the near future.

“The document we’ve delivered includes concerns of the United States and our allies and partners about Russia’s actions that undermine security, a principled and pragmatic evaluation of the concerns that Russia has raised, and our own proposals for areas where we may be able to find common ground,” Blinken said.

US Ambassador to Russia John Sullivan delivered the response in person to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The document is intended to address concerns publically released by Moscow.

US officials have warned that a Russian invasion into Ukraine could be imminent, noting that Russia has shown no signs of de-escalation.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby speaks during a briefing at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, on January 24.

As Russian troops gather at the border of Ukraine, as many as 8,500 US troops have been placed on heightened alert for possible deployment.

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said Monday that the US troops’ status is largely meant to bolster NATO’s quick response force but notes that American forces would be “postured to be ready for any other contingencies as well.”

President Biden directed the order as the US continues to take steps to prepare for an invasion into Ukraine by Russia, a maneuver the White House has labeled “imminent.”

US President Joe?Biden acknowledged Tuesday a deeply uncertain situation at the Ukraine border, where Russian troops are amassing but few observers have any definitive knowledge of whether or when they might invade.

Earlier, the White House said a Russian invasion was “imminent,” and American?troops have been placed on high alert to deploy to Europe in a show of reassurance. US and European sanctions have been readied in the event of an invasion.

Even as tensions mounted, however, Biden conceded that one man’s opaque decision-making would determine how events unfold.

The President said he’d be willing to apply sanctions on Putin himself, a step previous presidents have avoided.

And he revealed he could move US troops into Eastern Europe soon to demonstrate American commitment to its NATO allies: “I may be moving some of?those troops in the near term?just because it takes time.?And again, it’s not provocative,” he said.

Still, Biden made clear Putin remains something of an enigma, whose vague intentions have have proved befuddling to him and other western leaders.

Kremlin's deputy chief of staff Dmitry Kozak gives a press conference at the Russian Ambassador's residence in Paris, France, on January 26.

Russian and Ukrainian negotiators agreed that a permanent ceasefire in eastern Ukraine must be observed “unconditionally” following hours-long talks in Paris on Wednesday.

The announcement came after a meeting at the Elysee Palace of the so-called Normandy Format – a four-way conversation between representatives from Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France – that has been trying to broker peace in eastern Ukraine since 2014.

Tensions between Moscow and Kyiv?are at their highest in years, with a large Russian troop build-up near the shared borders of the two former Soviet republics – spurring fears that Russia could launch an invasion.

Speaking after Wednesday’s meeting, Moscow’s chief negotiator Dmitry Kozak said the ceasefire must be observed “unconditionally” but that many other issues in eastern Ukraine remained unresolved.

Read the full story below:

Kremlin's deputy chief of staff Dmitry Kozak (L) and Russian Ambassador to France Alexey Meshkov give a press conference at the Russian Ambassador's residence in Paris on January 26, 2022. - Top officials from Ukraine and Russia met in Paris on January 26 for talks to defuse tensions on their border, a meeting seen as a positive step by France despite fresh warnings from the US that Moscow was preparing military action. The meeting in the French capital between the Kremlin's deputy chief of staff and a senior Ukrainian presidential advisor alongside French and German diplomats, was seen by Paris as holding out faint hope of a thaw. (Photo by Léo PIERRARD / AFP) (Photo by LEO PIERRARD/AFP via Getty Images)

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