US Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman said the United States expects Russian President Vladimir Putin to invade Ukraine by mid-February, after the Beijing Olympics.
While Russia announced that it had received Washington's response to its proposals regarding security guarantees, which US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said was charting a diplomatic path to move forward, and Moscow had to choose.
Sherman warned in her statements that any Russian move would lead to loss of life among the Russians.
She emphasized that Ukraine is no longer what it was years ago and is able to defend itself.
The US diplomat confirmed that Washington will continue to provide military support to Ukraine, noting that President Joe Biden has authorized additional aid to Kiev with $200 million in military and security assistance.
On the other hand, Sherman announced that the US administration is conducting intensive discussions with European capitals to ensure the supply of energy to Europe, in order to ensure that Russia does not use energy as a weapon.
The US diplomat's comments come at a time when Reuters reported that the US embassy in the Ukrainian capital urged its citizens to leave immediately.
Extra forces
In a related context, sources said that the United States and its allies are in talks to deploy more forces in eastern European countries that are members of NATO in a show of support with the increasing threat of Russia to Ukraine.
CNN quoted two US defense officials as saying that the deployments, numbering about 1,000 troops from each country, would be similar to the frontline battle groups currently stationed in the Baltic states and Poland.
Among the countries considering accepting the deployments are Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary, the officials said.
The possibility of some troops being deployed near Russia's doorstep before the invasion indicates a shift on the part of the US administration, which was previously concerned about the risk of provoking Moscow further.
written reply
For its part, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced that it had received the US written response to its proposals regarding security guarantees through the US ambassador in Moscow.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov had confirmed earlier that the US side had requested not to publish the details of the US response to the Russian proposals, and indicated that Moscow would crystallize its position and next steps based on this response.
The meeting of US Secretary of State Blinken (left) and his Russian counterpart Lavrov in Geneva a few days ago did not succeed in de-escalating the statements (Anatolia).
In a speech before the State Duma (the second chamber of the Russian Federation Parliament), the Russian Foreign Minister said that his country would not stand idly by towards what he called the Western aggressive path towards his country.
Lavrov described the West's demand for Russia to limit its military exercises within its borders as brazen and as representing the highest degree of double standards.
For his part, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said that Washington had provided Moscow with a written response regarding the security guarantees it was requesting, adding that this response charts a diplomatic path that allows moving forward.
Blinken told a news conference that Washington was open to dialogue on the Ukrainian crisis if Moscow desired, but he indicated on the other hand that the United States and its NATO allies are working to strengthen Ukraine's defenses and will provide economic support as well.
welcome
In a related context, Denis Pushilin, President of the self-proclaimed Donetsk Republic in southeastern Ukraine, welcomed Russian statements about the possibility of providing military support to the separatists in the Donbass region.
This comes at a time when these forces accused the Ukrainian army of intensifying its preparations to launch military operations in Donbass.
She added that she had intelligence information that the Ukrainian army was being reinforced, far from the eyes of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) monitors.
The separatists added that their information also indicates that the Ukrainian authorities intensified the training of elements of the Ukrainian nationalist groups in several cities in preparation for their involvement in the battles, according to the separatists.
On the other hand, Ukrainian Defense Minister Alexei Rzhenkov announced the receipt of a third shipment of American weapons weighing about 80 tons, including Javelin anti-tank missiles.
While Ukraine rejects any dialogue with the separatists, Kiev says it prefers diplomatic and political solutions to defuse the conflict in the Donbas region over military ones.
four-way talks
The diplomatic statements and military moves coincide with the four-way talks taking place in Paris, between advisers from Russia, Ukraine, France and Germany to discuss military developments in eastern Ukraine and implement the terms of the Minsk Agreement, specifically the part related to the special status of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions.
Prior to the meeting, the French Foreign Ministry stressed the territorial integrity of Ukraine, and vowed a firm response to any new Russian military aggression against Ukraine.
Ukrainian Presidential Office Director Andriy Yermak said that Kiev will not hold any direct talks with pro-Russian separatists.
Prior to the Normandy format consultations in Paris, Yurmak confirmed that Kiev would participate in the talks aimed at a ceasefire and discuss humanitarian issues in eastern Ukraine.