President Joe Biden said he believes Vladimir Putin does not want a full-scale war in Ukraine and would pay a “high price” if he carries out a military strike.
President Biden, speaking at a news conference on his one-year anniversary, also said he believed Russia was preparing to take military action against Ukraine, although he did not think the Russian president had made a final decision. He suggested that it would restrict Russia’s access to the international banking system if Moscow further invaded Ukraine.
“I’m not sure he (Putin) is sure of what he’s going to do, ” Biden said. He added, “I think he will attack (he will carry out a military attack on Ukraine).”
President Biden’s comments came hours after Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, during a visit to Kiev, accused Russia of planning to further strengthen the border, adding more troops, in addition to the 100,000 it has so far deployed. Mr Blinken suggested the figure could be doubled “with a quick decision”.
Secretary Blinken did not provide details on the allegations, but it is known that Russia has sent an unspecified number of troops to its ally Belarus, which also borders Ukraine, for major military exercises next month.
The US president said he believed the decision would be “only” Putin’s and suggested he was not entirely sure that Russian officials with whom senior White House advisers had negotiated were fully informed of Putin’s views.
“There are a lot of questions about whether the people he’s talking to know what he’s going to do, ” Biden said.
President Biden also suggested that a “small incursion” would trigger a smaller response than a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, saying “it is very important that we keep all NATO members to in a line “. President Biden later at the press conference tried to clarify that he was referring to a non-military action, like a cyber attack, that would be expected with a similar reciprocal response.
Ukraine, meanwhile, said it was prepared for the worst and would survive any hardship it faced.