Secretary of State Antony Blinken says Russia is planning to “manufacture” a pretext to attack Ukraine.
During a speech at a meeting of the United Nations Security Council on Thursday, Blinken said a “manufactured” event “could be a violent event that Russia will blame on Ukraine or outrageous accusations that Russia will level against the Ukrainian government.”
“We don’t know exactly the form it will take. It could be a fabricated so-called terrorist bombing inside Russia. The invented discovery of a mass grave. A staged drone strike against civilians. Or a fake — even a real — attack using chemical weapons. Russia may describe this event as ethnic cleansing, or a genocide,” he continued.
Additionally, Blinken said Russian media has “already begun to spread some of these false alarms and claims” to “maximize public outrage to lay the groundwork for an invented justification for war.”
The secretary of State went on to say that the Russian government will “issue proclamations declaring that Russia must respond to defend Russian citizens or ethnic Russians in Ukraine.”
Finally, Blinken said an attack would begin with aerial bombardments and cyber attacks, followed by an attack on targets that have “already been identified and mapped out in detailed plans.”
Watch the video below:
Blinken to the UN: "Russia plans to manufacture a pretext for its attack. This could be a violent event that Russia will blame on Ukraine or outrageous accusations that Russia will level against the Ukraine government. We don't know exactly the form it will take." pic.twitter.com/W5TQwzgP3q
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) February 17, 2022
On Thursday, President Joe Biden was asked, “How high is the threat of a Russian invasion right now?”
“It’s very high,” he responded.
He explained that Russia has not pulled troops back from near Ukraine’s border despite its claims and has instead continued its troop build-up. He also said the U.S. believes Russia is “engaged in a false flag operation to have an excuse to go in.”
“Every indication we have is that they are prepared to go into Ukraine. Attack Ukraine,” Biden added.
The president also said he believes an invasion will take place “in the next several days.”