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US State Dept issues readout of Sec State Antony Blinken's conversation today with Poland's foreign minister, Zbigniew Rau, re: Russia and Ukraine

U.S. officials say there are between 3,000-5,000 Russian mercenaries from the Wagner Group in Africa and about 800-1,000 in Mali currently, a number they expect to grow after France announced it was withdrawing its troops from the West African country

Nearly half of Russian forces massed near Ukraine are now within 30 miles (48 km) of the border, British sources say - Guardian

Military echelon with Iskander filmed today

Ukraine will not negotiate with pro-Russian militants, because it is nonsense, said Zelensky

Self-propelled artillery filmed today in Borki, Belgorod region

Putin issued a decree conferring the rank of general on 26 servicemen of the Russian Armed Forces. 24 colonels received the rank of major general, and two captains of the 1st rank - rear admirals.

Blinken: Russia says it is drawing down those forces. We don't see that happening on the ground. Our information indicates clearly that these forces including ground troops, aircraft, ships are preparing to launch an attack against Ukraine in the coming DAYS

British Minister of State: We condemn the proposal of the Russian State Duma to recognize the independence of the regions of eastern Ukraine

British Minister of State for Europe and North America: Russia has fabricated a dispute in the Donbass and continues to fuel it

Blinken says he invited Russian foreign minister Lavrov to meet next week to "discuss the steps that we can take to resolve this crisis without conflict." Alongside meetings at NATO-Russia Council and OSCE

Sec Blinken says he is laying out in detail what the US is seeing to push Russia to abandon the path of war & US will be "relieved if Russia does not invade Ukraine and US "will gladly accept any criticism" if there is not an invasion

U.S. Secretary of State Blinken says Russia's military buildup of 'more' than 150,000 troops on Ukraine's border is a 'manufactured provocation'

Blinken: "I am here today not to start a war, but to prevent one. The information I presented here is validated by what we've seen unfolding in plain sight before our eyes for months”

Blinken: "Russia may describe this event as ethnic cleansing or a genocide, making a mockery of a concept that we in this chamber do not take light, nor do I take lightly based on my family history”

At the UNSC, Russian deputy foreign minister urges U.S. not to put itself in an "awkward position" by continuing to make "baseless accusations" about Ukrainian invasion. Speaking immediately after, Blinken says this is "a moment of peril" as Russia prepares for war

"The most immediate threat to peace and security is Russia's looming aggression against Ukraine," @SecBlinken told @UN Security Council

"This crisis directly affects every member of this council and every country in the world," @SecBlinken says at the UN

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister at UNSC: The Ukrainian army is using prohibited methods in eastern Ukraine

Russia is trying to distort reality and accuse Ukraine of shelling - Ukrainian FM Kuleba

The White House accuses Russia of "Potemkin diplomacy, where they publicly offer to talk and make claims about deescalation while privately mobilizing for war”

State Department spokesperson says of Russia expelling the US' number 2 official at US embassy Moscow: "Russia's action against our [Deputy Chief of Mission] was unprovoked and we consider this an escalatory step and are considering our response."

Russia 'will be forced to respond, including with military-technical measures,' if no US security guarantees: Russian foreign ministry

British Ministry of Defense: Russia retains a significant military presence that can conduct an invasion without further warning. Below demonstrates President Putin's possible axis of invasion. He still can choose to prevent conflict and preserve peace

Turkish drone targeted the surrounding of the Russian military base in Hasakah northern countryside, NE_Syria

Ukraine's defence ministry says shelling from pro-Russian forces has stopped as of 13.00 local time - Reuters

Russia has "enough troops, enough capabilities to launch a full-fledged invasion of Ukraine with very little or no warning time" per @NATO's @jensstoltenberg "That is what makes the situation so dangerous"

Russian foreign Ministry comments on response: it is inappropriate to demand to withdraw troops from certain regions of Russia. Russia demands Ukraine implements Minsk agreements, the West should stop weapons delivery to Ukraine, withdraw what was delivered already, recall all instructors and advisors from Ukraine, prohibition of NATO joint exercises with Ukraine. Russia demands all U.S. troops and weapons withdrawal from Central and Eastern Europe, Baltic countries. Russia expects proposals on non-expansion of NATO. Russia highlights that questions on arms control cannot be considered separately from other points

SecDef Austin: no sign of de-escalation, "quite the contrary we see them add to the more than 150 thousand troops that they have already arrayed on that border even in the last couple of days." Added: "We even see them stocking up their blood supplies"

Deputy US Ambassador Gorman expelled from Russia

The Russians have delivered a written response to the United States on Ukraine crisis: "We can confirm that we have received a response from the Russian Federation. It was delivered to Ambassador Sullivan in Moscow today," says a senior State Department official

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said the attack on a kindergarten in Ukraine was a "false flag operation designed to discredit the Ukrainians", adding: "We fear very much that that is a thing we will see more of over the next few days"

The Ukrainian MFA has summoned Israel's ambassador to Kyiv to demand an explanation, following Israeli media reports that Jerusalem requested Moscow's assistance in evacuating its citizens from Ukraine in case of war

US Defense Secretary said Russia inching troops closer to Ukraine, stocking up on blood supplies. He adds that "I was a soldier myself not that long ago. I know firsthand that you don't do these sorts of things for no reason"

US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield - "The evidence on the ground is that Russia is moving toward an imminent invasion. This is a crucial moment."

Military activity recorded at Kursk railway station

Russian MoD spox insists Russian troops will return to home bases at the end of exercises in Belarus on Sunday; also says tank forces are returning to Nizhny Novgorod from the Kursk and Bryansk region (bordering Ukraine)

NATO: We are concerned about Russia's deployment of nuclear weapons in Kaliningrad and Iskander missiles in Belarus

NATO Secretary General: Russia is working to modernize its nuclear missiles, and these weapons are constantly worrying us

U.S. envoy has arrived at Russian Foreign Ministry

A new Russian military camp has been set up in northern Crimea

More reports of damage done by Russian forces attacks on Ukrainian government-controlled territory. A woman in Maryinka, Donetsk region, was injured after a shell landed next to a bus stop, close to a school, head of humanitarian mission Proliska reports

Kremlin spox Dmitry Peskov: Ukraine's army has taken "provocative actions that have only intensified in the last day"

Ministry of Defense of Estonia: Russia is ready for war - Russian intel has compiled a list of targets in Ukraine in order to paralyse UA self-defence

Lavrov: Russian response to US reply on security guarantees will be published a few hours after sending to Washington

Ukrainian FM: Ukrainian Stanytsia Luhanska village was shelled with heavy weapons from the occupied territory of the Donbas. Civilian infrastructure damaged. We call on all partners to swiftly condemn this severe violation of Minsk agreements by Russia amid an already tense security situation

Smoke seen at Russian Embassy in Kyiv

Russian FM Lavrov says that Moscow will send its response to the United States on security guarantees today. Document will be also published for everyone

Lukashenka: there is an agreement with Russia that Russian ammunition in Belarus will stay after the exercises

Lukashenka said that the decision on the recognition of the republics at occupied parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine will be joint with Russia

UK Defense ministry estimating recent additions to Russian forces as amounting to 7000 troops in past 48 hours

On their call today, @POTUS and @OlafScholz "underscored the importance of continued transatlantic coordination on diplomacy and deterrence measures and the reinforcement of NATO's eastern flank if Russia further invades Ukraine," according to the @WhiteHouse

Imagery—again, taken by Capella Space and analyzed by @CSBiggers—shows a thinning Russian military footprint at Bakhchysarai in Crimea and vehicles being loaded onto railway transfer points. Though it's unclear where they're headed & for how long

Israel told Russia ahead of a possible invasion of Ukraine it will need help in evacuating its citizens & diplomats from the country. Israeli officials said the message was passed today in a phone call between foreign ministry DG @AlonUshpiz & Russian DFM Bogdanov

New @Maxar satellite images from the past 48 hours continue to show heightened military activity in Belarus, Crimea, and western Russia. Pics below are from Feb. 15 and show a new pontoon bridge over the Prypyat River in Belarus

WSJ reported that Saudi is snubbing US demands to up production, sticking with Russia, member of OPEC+

Russia continues to build up military capabilities near Ukraine, including armored vehicles, helicopters, and a field hospital: Britain's top defense intel official "Russia has the military mass in place to conduct an invasion of Ukraine" said Lt Gen Sir Jim Hockenhull

There's been some imagery going around social media that is allegedly the "counter-measure" Russia used to ward off what Moscow says was a US submarine in its territorial waters in the Pacific (see below). The US military now says it's classic Russian MOD misinformation

The State Dept has stood up a task force on Ukraine in recent days, says @StateDeptSpox. He says it's a large team operating. Task forces are often stood up at the department to coordinate response to high-level situations, often crises, that cut across bureaus & agencies

[email protected] Ned Price says Russia is spreading falsehoods, making up false claims of "genocide" of ethnic Russians in eastern Ukraine-possibly as a pretext for another invasion

"We are particularly concerned" of mention by President Putin and others about baseless claims of "genocide" in Donbas as a pretext for military action by Russia in Ukraine, adds @StateDeptSpox

"More Russian forces, not fewer" at the border with Ukraine and they're "moving into fighting position," according to @StateDeptSpox

The @StateDept announces that @SecBlinken will travel to Germany for the Munich Security Conference @MunSecConf-coordinating with allies on Russia's threat to Ukraine will be high on the agenda

Sentinel-1 shows signs of activity at the outskirts of Oktyabrskiy, Belgorod Oblast

US has a range of options in response if Russia recognizes Luhansk as an independent republic, says @PressSec

Ukraine's Defence Minister says latest intelligence report shows no evidence of Russian withdrawal, still has 140,000 troops near borders

In Moscow, Russia, the security agencies detained prominent political commentator, professor Valery Solovey @V_Solovey on a criminal charge of inciting hatred. They also detained his son Pavel. Police searched their homes and seized devices

CNN has learned a Navy P-8 had an "extremely close" encounter with multiple Russian military jets over international waters in Med this weekend, according to multiple US officials. Maneuvers by the Russians were described as "unsafe and unprofessional."

Ukrainian FM Dmytro Kuleba: We continue to demand transparency from Russia, which ignored yesterday's meeting in the framework of the Vienna Document

Russia has 'just as many troops' as before on Ukraine border: French foreign minister

NATO chief Stoltenberg: "What we see today is that Russia maintains a massive invasion force ready to attack”

"Over the last several years, we have observed and documented a host of malicious activity conducted by Russian state-sponsored cyber actors targeting US critical infrastructure" per @CISAJen in statement

[email protected] @FBI @NSAGov warn Russia cyber actors targeting defense contractors with: - Brute force techniques; - Spearphishing emails; - Harvested credentials; - Mapping Active Directory; - Maintaining access for months

[email protected] @FBI @NSAGov issuing cybersecuurity advisory on Russia targeting US defense contractors supporting @USArmy @usairforce @USNavy @SpaceForceDoD & intelligence agencies Goal was to get info on weapons development, communications infrastructure, research & more

NATO defense ministers say they are "gravely concerned" by Russia's "large scale, unprovoked and unjustified" military build up around Ukraine. "Russia's actions pose a serious threat to Euro-Atlantic security," the stmt says

[email protected] says Russia's military moves show it is willing to contest the fundamental principles of Europe's security, including by using force. "This is the new normal in Europe

Speaking in Brussels, NATO's @jensstoltenberg calls the Russian threat vs Ukraine the "most serious security crisis in decades." "There are signs from Moscow diplomacy should continue. But so far we see no signs of de-escalation on the ground, not troops or equipment

Tos-1A at Zolotukhino station. Kursk Oblast

These aggressive remarks by a spokesperson from China's MOFA during today's briefing are quite telling--an indication that China is further backing up Russia's rhetoric over Ukraine

Tanks filmed in Tomarovka, Belgorod region

Military equipment possible in the forest near Unecha, Bryansk region

Russia's Investigative Committee claims mass graves of hundreds of civilians killed by Ukrainian shelling found

The Russian Security Council said that the West is conducting a carefully planned information operation against Russia, as on the eve of the American invasion of Iraq, it is aimed at limiting the combat training of Russian troops

[email protected] says the US is not seeing evidence that Russia is pulling back troops from the border of Ukraine, despite Moscow's claims, and they "see forces, especially forces that would be in the vanguard of any renewed aggression against Ukraine" continuing to mass

Russian Foreign Ministry: Russia conducts military exercises, as neighboring Ukraine and the region are pumped up with weapons, the consequences of these steps are unpredictable

"Kremlin approval of this appeal would amount to the Russian government's wholesale rejection of its commitments under the Minsk agreements," says @SecBlinken of Duma resolution on eastern Ukraine

Putin met with President of Brasil Bolsonaro in Kremlin

Military echelons unloading in Kursk region today

The Russian Ministry of Finance said that Moscow is ready to help Belarus refinance its debt (in Minsk they said that due to Western sanctions, $3.5 billion is needed)

In case of a public refusal of NATO, Kyiv must proclaim its neutral, non-bloc status, as provided for in the declaration of state sovereignty of Ukraine, - Russian envoy Gavrilov

NATO's @jensstoltenberg: says Russia retains capability for full-fledged invasion of Ukraine without warning. "What we see is that they (Russia) have increased the number of troops and more troops are on their way. So far, no de-escalation

Russian Troops still coming west. With identification numbers painted over

The Kremlin: NATO is wrong in saying that there is no evidence of the withdrawal of Russian forces

NATO Defence Ministerial is about to start. Poland's Defence Minister @mblaszczak and Allied ministers will discuss the security situation in Europe amid Russia's military build-up in and around Ukraine & other topics

US Secretary of Defense: We are committed to the principle of collective security, which is a firm and solid commitment

Kremlin spokesperson said that Russia is not involved in any DDoS attacks, including in Ukraine

A column of Russian military trucks and tractors was spotted today (16.02), moving from Mozyr towards Babruisk (Mogilev region, Belarus)

NATO Secretary General: We will welcome any reduction of Russian forces at the Ukrainian border

Helicopters continue to be spotted in Mogilev region today (16.02), flying from Smolensk region of the Russian Federation

Russia will not participate in a special meeting in the OSCE on the issue of exercises on the territory of Belarus, - head of the delegation Gavrilov said