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Frustrated Russian forces are prepared to “indiscriminately” use thermobaric bombs to seize control of Ukraine, Western officials believe. One western official said it was “likely” that Russia failed to achieve its main objectives on day one of its invasion of Ukraine. The official added: “And my fear with those objectives, that timescale not being met, is if that continues to be a theme where they are delayed and then my concern is that that Russia uses indiscriminate use of indirect fire, particularly artillery systems, thermobaric weapons - which we know Russia has both in its armoury and has used in...

CNN Business)The standoff between the United States and Russia over the conflict in Ukraine has so far mainly played out on diplomatic and economic fronts. But now, as Russia invades Ukraine and the United States imposes new sanctions on Russia, there are concerns that may change. The US government is on high alert for the possibility of the conflict spilling over into cyberspace, where Russia has shown an ability to cause significant disruption and damage in the past. On Tuesday, a senior FBI cyber official warned US businesses and local governments that they should be vigilant against potential ransomware attacks,...

MOSCOW/DONETSK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday revealed new sanctions on Russian elites and two banks as the West tries to stop an all-out invasion of Ukraine by punishing Moscow for ordering troops to two separatist regions it has recognised. Sanctions are being applied to VEB bank and Russia's military bank, Promsvyazbank, which does defence deals, Biden said. Starting on Wednesday U.S. sanctions will begin against Russian elites and their family members. Tass news agency cited Promsvyazbank as saying the sanctions would not have a significant effect since it had taken precautionary measures ahead of time. It did...

MOSCOW (AP) — President Joe Biden announced the U.S. was ordering heavy financial sanctions against Russian banks and oligarchs on Tuesday, declaring that Moscow had flagrantly violated international law in what he called the “beginning of a Russian invasion of Ukraine.” “None of us will be fooled” by Russian President Vladimir Putin’s claims about Ukraine, the U.S. President said. And he said more sanctions could be on the way if Putin proceeds further.

President Biden delivers a statement on Russia and Ukraine.

If a chance for peace was possible with Vladimir Putin, it vanished Monday with his recognition of two “breakaway” states in eastern Ukraine and his sending of “peacekeepers” — read: Russian troops — into the region. There are no niceties here: He’s invading Ukraine. President Biden sanctioned any investment or trade with the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, but he should pull the trigger on that “mother of all sanctions” he has promised before. There is no leverage with a madman. Punishment is now the only way.

President Joe Biden will give an "update on Russia and Ukraine" from the White House at 2 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday, the White House announced. U.S. stocks SPX, -0.43% were falling Tuesday as investors reacted to Russian President Vladimir Putin's decision to order troops to breakaway regions of Ukraine, escalating tensions and raising fears of a full-scale invasion.

MOSCOW (AP) — The White House on Tuesday began referring to Russian troop deployments in eastern Ukraine as an “invasion” after initially hesitating to use the term — a red line that President Joe Biden has said would result in the U.S. levying severe sanctions against Moscow. Several European leaders said earlier in the day that Russian troops have moved into rebel-held areas in eastern Ukraine after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recognized their independence — but some indicated it was not yet the long-feared, full-fledged invasion. Later, the White House signaled a shift in its own position. “We think this...

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — With all eyes on a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin is sending his top security envoy to the Balkans where Moscow has been trying to maintain influence mainly through its ally Serbia, according to reports. The talks are reportedly to focus on Moscow’s claims that “mercenaries” from Albania, Kosovo and Bosnia are being sent from those Balkan states to fight on the Ukrainian side against the pro-Russia rebels amid fears of a Russian attack.

President Joe Biden spoke with President Emmanuel Macron of France today. The world leaders discussed the ongoing tensions between Russia and Ukraine. President Macron also spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Macron says he proposed a summit be held between President Biden and President Putin to discuss security and strategic stability in Europe. Biden and Putin have both accepted “the principle of such a summit,” France says. The details would have to be prepared by US Secretary of State Blinken and Russian Minister Lavrov during their meeting on Thursday 24 February, the French Government said. “It can only be held...

President Joe Biden has agreed “in principle” to a meeting with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin as long as that country holds off on what U.S. officials believe is an imminent assault on Ukraine. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the administration has been clear that “we are committed to pursuing diplomacy until the moment an invasion begins.” U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov are set to meet on Thursday in Europe as long as a further invasion doesn’t occur.

Within the book of instructions for the ideological Chicago crew (Alinsky peeps), there are chapters on how to create off-ramps to cloud their agenda. If they need a bigger cloud, they create a bigger crisis. The crisis then becomes the cover, the justification to explain the outcomes of their agenda. In the latest example, the White House is shifting blame for the collapsing economy, surging oil prices, massive gas price increases and overall U.S. inflation. The manufactured crisis in Ukraine then takes on a geopolitical angle and a domestic angle. The prior rate of inflation is now being blamed on...

Kamala Harris told reporters Sunday that the U.S. may face 'some costs' associated with involvement in Europe should Russia invade Ukraine, which she claims is all but certain. When asked before departing Germany for the U.S. if Americans should be braced for economic fallout from involvement, the vice president said 'sure.' 'When America stands for principles, and all of the things that we hold dear, it requires sometimes for us to put ourselves out there in a way that maybe we will incur some cost,' Harris told a group of seven reporters in Munich on Sunday. 'And in this situation,...

President Joe Biden on Sunday abruptly canceled plans to spend the Presidents Day holiday at home in Delaware amid the mounting crisis over what officials say is a planned Russian invasion of Ukraine. The White House had announced shortly after 2:30 p.m. that Biden would leave DC around 5 p.m. to fly to Wilmington, raising the possibility that the commander in chief would update reporters on developments before boarding the Marine One chopper on the White House’s South Lawn.

he Russia-Ukraine crisis is taking place thousands of miles away from the closest major US city. And yet millions of American families would feel the economic consequences of a full-blown conflict. That's because the world economy and financial markets are interconnected. As Covid demonstrated, events on one side of the planet can set off shockwaves on the other side. In this case, an invasion of Ukraine by Russia would likely drive up the already-high cost of living in the United States, rattle investment portfolios and perhaps even slow down the economic recovery. "The average American household is going to bear...

An FBI report obtained by Newsweek has called on the U.S. private sector to be prepared for potential state-sponsored cyber attacks to be launched by Russia as tensions over Ukraine threaten to spill into an all-out conflict in Eastern Europe. The Liason Information Report (LIR) was dated February 20 and attributed to the FBI Office of Private Sector. "The FBI Cyber Division, in coordination with the FBI's Office of Private Sector (OPS), prepared this LIR to inform the private sector about the threat of Russian state-sponsored advanced persistent threat (APT) cyber activities, while tensions with Russia are heightened," the report...

President Biden is scheduled to spend at least part of his President’s Day weekend at his home in Delaware, the White House announced Sunday, amid warnings from administration officials that a Russian invasion of Ukraine is imminent. Mr. Biden was expected to stay at the White House throughout the holiday weekend, but the White House scrapped those plans Sunday afternoon

Six months ago, the transatlantic alliance was on shaky ground, with President Biden’s promise of a reinvigorated NATO under U.S. leadership severely undermined by the Afghanistan debacle and a foreign policy that seemed unready for prime time. Today, Biden and his team have redeemed themselves in the eyes of many NATO allies, with a tough stance on Ukraine and the successful wrangling of the often-fractious alliance to support it. Ukraine’s fate, and Russia’s future relationship with the West, remain uncertain. Biden has said he is convinced Russian President Vladimir Putin, with more than 150,000 troops and massive weaponry amassed on...

Fox News national security correspondent Jennifer Griffin told her co-hosts Friday on “The Five” that the Biden administration is not overhyping the possibility Russia will invade Ukraine to draw attention away from special counsel John Durham’s investigation. Greg Gutfeld said, “There’s something else going on here that is–that feels very, very manufactured. And I don’t know what it is.” Kennedy said, “I know what it is. It’s Jake Sullivan.” She continued, “Jake Sullivan is the national security adviser. And he is in deep yogurt in the Durham probe, and he’s been the one saying, ‘We have so much intelligence an...

President Joe Biden announced Friday he was fully convinced that Russian President Vladimir Putin would invade Ukraine and attack their capital city. “As of this moment, I’m convinced he has made the decision,” Biden said during his latest assertion of a coming Russian offensive. “I have reason to believe that.”