RAISING THE STAKES: As Russian troops rolled into separatist-controlled eastern Ukraine under the guise of “peacekeeping,” the Biden administration announced limited sanctions that would prohibit Americans from doing business in the regions that Moscow recognized Monday as independent republics.
“These measures respond to Russia’s recognition gambit. They are not the swift and severe economic measures we have been preparing in coordination with allies and partners should Russia further invade Ukraine,” a senior administration official told reporters on a conference call Monday night.
Further sanctions would be announced today, after consultation with U.S. allies in response to what the official called “a clear violation of international law and Ukraine’s sovereignty.”
But the official stopped short of labeling the pretext of a peacekeeping mission in the rebel-controlled Donbas region an invasion. “There have been Russian troops in the Donbas for eight years now, and that, you know, Russia has denied this. Now Russia looks like it’s going to be operating openly in that region, and we are going to be responding accordingly,” the official said.
“Russian troops moving into Donbas would not itself be a new step,” the official argued. “This has been the state of affairs in that region and a big part of why it has been so unstable since 2014.”
RUSSIAN TROOPS MOVING INTO DONBAS NOT A ‘NEW STEP,’ ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL SAYS
FLASHBACK: It was just four weeks ago that President Joe Biden drew widespread criticism for an off-the-cuff remark that was seen as giving Russian President Vladimir Putin the green light for exactly what has transpired.
Biden said any U.S. response would depend on what Russia does. “It’s one thing if it’s a minor incursion and then we end up having a fight about what to do and not do,” he said at a news conference on Jan. 19.
The firestorm that followed forced an immediate clarification from White House press secretary Jen Psaki. “If any Russian military forces move across the Ukrainian border, that’s a renewed invasion,” Psaki said in a statement.
In an appearance on CNN a few days later, Secretary of State Antony Blinken was asked by Dana Bash point-blank, “Would seizing or recognizing the entire Donbas region qualify as an invasion and result in the crippling sanctions that you’re threatening?”
“If a single additional Russian force goes into Ukraine in an aggressive way,” Blinken said, “that would trigger a swift, a severe, and a united response from us and from Europe.”
PUTIN THREATENS ‘BLOODBATH’ IF UKRAINE RESISTS LOSS OF TERRITORY TO RUSSIA
‘HE CALLS THEM PEACEKEEPERS. THIS IS NONSENSE’: At an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council last night, U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said Russia’s recognition of Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states and dispatch of Russian “peacekeepers” is clearly a “pretext for a further invasion of Ukraine.”
“We do not have to guess at President Putin’s motives. Today, President Putin made a series of outrageous, false claims about Ukraine aimed at creating a pretext for war and immediately thereafter announced Russian troops are entering the Donbas,” Thomas-Greenfield said, referencing a fiery speech Putin gave yesterday. “He calls them peacekeepers. This is nonsense. We know what they really are. In doing so, he has put before the world a choice. We must meet the moment, and we must not look away.”
RUSSIA HAS A ‘HIT AND DETAIN’ LIST FOR UKRAINIANS POST-INVASION, US ALLEGES
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HAPPENING TODAY: The White House is expected to make an announcement of the sanctions it is prepared to levy against Russia immediately while reserving the option for wider sanctions to follow.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said today that the U.K. will also introduce “immediate” economic sanctions against Russia and warned that Putin appears ready to launch a full-scale invasion any day now.
In a statement again warning Americans to get out of Ukraine, Secretary State Antony Blinken said the security situation in Ukraine “continues to be unpredictable” and “may deteriorate with little notice.”
“Russian troops have continued to move closer to the border in what looks like plans for an invasion at any moment,” Blinken said, announcing that U.S. diplomats in the western city of Lviv decamped to Poland overnight for security reasons.
“The fact that we are taking prudent precautions for the sake of the safety of U.S. government personnel and U.S. citizens, as we do regularly worldwide, in no way undermines our support for, or our commitment to, Ukraine,” Blinken said. “Our commitment to Ukraine transcends any one location.”
STATE DEPARTMENT: TOO DANGEROUS FOR US DIPLOMATS TO SLEEP IN UKRAINE AT NIGHT
‘WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?’ At the Munich Security Conference over the weekend, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had a pointed question for the West.
“You are telling me that it’s 100% that the war will start in a couple of days. Well then, what are you waiting for?” Zelensky said in a Q&A session. “We don’t need your sanctions after the bombardment will happen and after our country will be fired at, or after we will have no borders, after we will have no economy or parts of our country will be occupied. Why would we need those sanctions then?”
ZELENSKY: WESTERN LEADERS BECAME PUTIN’S ‘ACCOMPLICES,’ WAR MEANS ‘MILLIONS OF CASUALTIES’
‘TANTAMOUNT TO AN INVASION’: Many in Congress are asking the same question: What is the Biden administration waiting for?
“Today’s events are tantamount to an invasion, said Idaho Sen. Jim Risch, ranking Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, in a statement. “Putin is using smoke and mirrors to continue chipping away at Ukraine’s sovereignty, in hopes that the West won’t react, which has proved to be true thus far.”
“The U.S. and our allies must immediately implement harsh sanctions that Putin cannot ignore,” Risch said. “We also must immediately increase security assistance to Ukraine.”
‘NOT THE TIME FOR SYMBOLIC PINPRICKS’: “As we’ve said for months, setting the trigger for meaningful sanctions to Russian tanks rolling across Ukraine’s border was a dangerous mistake,” said Alabama Rep. Mike Rogers and Texas Rep. Michael McCaul, the top Republicans on the House Armed Services and Foreign affairs committees, respectively.
“Secretary Blinken committed to a ‘swift and firm response’ by the United States and its allies if Putin recognized Russian-backed separatist republics in Donbas. Now that the Kremlin has done so, we must immediately impose real costs for this blatant act of aggression and flagrant violation of Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Rogers and McCaul said in a joint statement. “Unfortunately, the sanctions previewed by the White House thus far are the definition of impotence.”
“Now is not the time for symbolic pinpricks that will serve only to embolden Putin and endanger our friends in Ukraine. Now is the time for President Biden to impose sanctions that strike at the heart of the Russian economy, and permanently end Nord Stream 2 once and for all, as he promised the world he would do.”
‘EFFECTIVE AND COHERENT ACTION’ NEEDED: “Russia’s blatant assault on the freedom and security of Ukraine, a sovereign and independent country, must end immediately,” said Rep. Adam Smith, the Democrat who heads the House Armed Services Committee.
Smith said he welcomed Biden’s executive order imposing limited sanctions but also called for “effective and coherent action” to hold Putin accountable.
“Make no mistake: ultimate blame for this crisis lies squarely at the feet of Vladimir Putin,” Smith said. “I join with President Biden and other leaders around the world in condemning Moscow’s actions, which follows Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014 and support for a violent separatist movement in eastern Ukraine ever since.”
PUTIN’S REWRITING OF HISTORY: In a sweeping hourlong televised speech, an aggrieved Putin vented that Ukraine was not a real country, that it was created by mistake by Bolshevik revolutionary leader Vladimir Lenin.
“Modern Ukraine was entirely created by Russia or, to be more precise, by Bolshevik, Communist Russia,” Putin said. “This process started practically right after the 1917 revolution, and Lenin and his associates did it in a way that was extremely harsh on Russia — by separating, severing what is historically Russian land. Nobody asked the millions of people living there what they thought.”
And ominously, Putin warned that the rejection of his demands gives Russia the right to take other steps to protect its security.
“President Putin asserted that Russia today has a rightful claim to all territories — all territories — from the Russian Empire; the same Russian Empire from before the Soviet Union, from over 100 years ago,” said Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield at the U.N.
“That includes all of Ukraine. It includes Finland. It includes Belarus and Georgia and Moldova, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. It includes parts of Poland and Turkey,” she said. “In essence, Putin wants the world to travel back in time. To a time before the United Nations. To a time when empires ruled the world. But the rest of the world has moved forward. It is not 1919. It is 2022.”
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
The Rundown
Washington Examiner: Putin threatens ‘bloodbath’ if Ukraine resists loss of territory to Russia
Washington Examiner: State Department: Too dangerous for US diplomats to sleep in Ukraine at night
Washington Examiner: Zelensky: Western leaders became Putin’s ‘accomplices,’ war means ‘millions of casualties’
Washington Examiner: Russian troops moving into Donbas not a ‘new step,’ administration official says
Washington Examiner: Russia has a ‘hit and detain’ list for Ukrainians post-invasion, US alleges
Washington Examiner: Moral Compass Federation begs Biden to better protect Afghan allies
Washington Examiner: Final Afghan refugees leave New Jersey base for resettlement
AP: World leaders focus on how to punish Russia over Ukraine
New York Times: U.S. And Its Allies Considering Timing And Scope Of Response
Politico: ‘War, Destruction And Death’: U.N. Security Council Members Slam Russia’s Ukraine Escalation
Agence France Presse: China Moves Closer To Russia, But Wary On Ukraine
Navy Times: Consequences Of Misunderstandings With Russian Ships Grow As Invasion Looms, CNO Says
Wall Street Journal: U.S. Nears Return To Iran Nuclear Deal
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The Cipher Brief: Opinion: The Perfect Storm of Technology, Intelligence and AI
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Calendar
TUESDAY | FEBRUARY 22
9 a.m. — Atlantic Council virtual discussion Finnish Defense Secretary Esa Pulkkinen on Finnish defense policy. https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event/a-conversation
9 a.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion: “U.S.-China Relations.” with Wang Jisi, professor at Peking University https://www.csis.org/events/beijinger-washington
10 a.m. — Carnegie Endowment for International Peace virtual discussion: “Understanding Putin and Ukraine,” with Dmitri Trenin, director of the Carnegie Moscow Center; and Aaron Miller, CEIP senior fellow on U.S. foreign policy. https://carnegieendowment.org/2022/02/22/carnegie-connects
10 a.m. — Center for a New American Security Mission Brief: “The Future of the Army National Guard,” with Lt. Gen. Jon Jensen, director, Army National Guard; and Becca Wasser, fellow, CNAS Defense Program https://www.cnas.org/events/mission-brief-the-future-of-the-army-national-guard
10 a.m. — Middle East Institute virtual discussion with Saudi defense specialist Saeid Alzahrani on “unmanned aerial systems, the missile war in Yemen, and Saudi Arabia’s evolving missile defense capabilities,” as part of the Defense Leadership series. https://www.mei.edu/events/mei-defense-leadership-series
11 a.m. — House Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Rep. Mark Takano, D-Calif., holds an online briefing with toxic-exposed veterans to discuss “Human Impact of Toxic Exposure” and the “Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act of 2021,” with Kate Hendricks Thomas, toxic-exposed Marine veteran and advocate; Jen Burch, toxic-exposed Air Force veteran and communications associate with the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America; and Jon Stewart, advocate and former host of “The Daily Show” https://docs.google.com/forms
11 a.m. — McCain Institute virtual discussion: “U.S. Indo-Pacific security partnerships,” with former Defense Secretary Mark Esper; and Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu https://www.mccaininstitute.org/resources/events
12:30 p.m. — Henry L. Stimson Center virtual discussion: “Acts of War: Accountability for Cyberattacks in Ukraine,” with Juan Andres Guerrero-Saade, adjunct lecturer at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies; Liis Vihul, CEO of Cyber Law International; and Michael Teodori, president of the Washington Foreign Law Society https://www.stimson.org/event/acts-of-war-accountability
1 p.m. — National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) STEM town hall with Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Heidi Shyu https://www.nationalacademies.org/event
1 p.m. — Brookings Institution and Wounded Warrior Project virtual discussion: “Veterans’ Needs in 2022,” with Terri Tanielian, special assistant to the president for veterans affairs; Tracy Farrell, vice president of engagement and physical health wellness at the Wounded Warrior Project; Melanie Mousseau, vice president of program operations and partnerships at the Wounded Warrior Project; Jen Silva, chief program officer at the Wounded Warrior Project; and Michael O’Hanlon, co-director of the Brookings Center for Security, Strategy, and Technology https://www.brookings.edu/events/veterans-needs
WEDNESDAY | FEBRUARY 23
8 a.m. — Atlantic Council virtual discussion: “Strengthening the transatlantic response to Russian aggression,” U.S. Ambassador to Poland Mark Brzezinski; Polish Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Marcin Przydacz; Slawomir Debski, director of the Polish Institute of International Affairs; Wojciech Kononczuk, deputy director of the Center for Eastern Studies; and Melinda Haring, deputy director of the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event/strengthening-the-transatlantic-response
9 a.m. — German Marshall Fund of the United States virtual discussion: “Adapting NATO to an Age of Technological Innovation,” with Joanna van der Merwe, defense fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis’ Defense Tech Initiative; Raluca Csernatoni, visiting scholar at Carnegie Europe; Nikolas Ott, manager at the Microsoft Cybersecurity and Digital Diplomacy Project; Philip Lockwood, deputy head of innovation at the NATO Headquarters Emerging Security Challenges Division; and Bruno Lete, senior fellow for security and defense at GMFUS https://www.gmfus.org/event/adapting-nato-age-technological-innovation
10 a.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion: “What’s Next for the China-Russia Relationship?” with Andrea Kendall-Taylor, director of the Center for a New American Security’s Transatlantic Security Program; Michael McFaul, director of Stanford University’s Institute for International Studies; Evan Medeiros, fellow in U.S.-China studies at Georgetown University; and Angela Stent, director emerita of Georgetown University’s Center for Eurasian, Russian and East European Studies https://www.csis.org/events/whats-next-china-russia-relationship
2 p.m. — Jewish Democratic Council of America virtual briefing: “The Crisis in Ukraine,” with Rep. Tom Malinowski, D-N.J. https://tinyurl.com/2jmd9ken
THURSDAY | FEBRUARY 24
9 a.m. — German Marshall Fund of the United States virtual discussion: “The Russia-Ukraine Crisis and Turkey’s Balancing Act,” Galip Dalay, fellow at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs; Maryna Vorotnyuk, associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute; Liana Fix, fellow at GMFUS; and Jonathan Katz, director of democracy initiatives at GMFUS https://www.gmfus.org/event/russia-ukraine-crisis-and-turkeys-balancing-act
10 a.m. Orlando, Florida — American Conservative Union Conservative Political Action Conference https://cpac.conservative.org
1 p.m. — National Defense Industrial Association virtual workshop” “Enabling the Joint Warfight: Joint All Domain Command and Control,” with Michael Zatman, principal director for fully networked command, control and communications in the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering; retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Richard Stapp, corporate vice president and CTO of Northrop Grumman; and former Deputy Defense Undersecretary for Acquisition and Sustainment Alan Shaffer, visiting fellow at the NDIA Emerging Technologies Institute, participate in a discussion https://www.ndia.org/events
2 p.m. — Atlantic Council virtual discussion: “Global Challenges and the Army’s Role,” with Army Secretary Christine Wormuth https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/event/global-challenges
2 p.m. — Association of the U.S. Army webinar: “Understanding Russia’s Grand Strategy,” with Andrew Monaghan, director of the Russia Research Network. https://info.ausa.org/e/784783/anding-Russia-s-Grand-Strategy
3 p.m. — Washington Post Live virtual discussion: “World Stage: Crisis in Ukraine” with British Ambassador to the United States Karen Pierce. https://www.washingtonpost.com/washington-post-live
3 p.m. — Center for Strategic and International Studies virtual discussion: “What’s Next for the UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan?” with former U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan James Cunningham; Nilofar Sakhi, senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center; and Mark Bowden, associate fellow at the Chatham House International Security Program https://www.csis.org/events/whats-next-un-assistance-mission-afghanistan
FRIDAY | FEBRUARY 25
8:15 a.m. — Government Executive Media Group virtual forum: “Doing Business with the Army,” with Matthew Paul, project manager at the Distributed Common Ground System-Army; Gayna Malcom-Packnett, interim associate director of small business programs at the Army Futures Command; and Wayne Sok, product lead at Army Chess https://events.washingtontechnology.com/army
9 a.m. — Woodrow Wilson Center Middle East Program virtual discussion: “Turkey’s Role in the Russian-Ukrainian Crisis,” with Turkish Ambassador to the United States Murat Mercan https://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/conversation
11 a.m. — Nuclear Threat Initiative virtual discussion: “From Cyber Attack to Nuclear War: Avoiding Escalation through Cooperation,” former State Department Coordinator for Cyber Issues Christopher Painter, president of the Global Forum on Cyber Expertise Foundation https://www.nti.org/events/christopher-painter
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“In essence, Putin wants the world to travel back in time. To a time before the United Nations. To a time when empires ruled the world. But the rest of the world has moved forward. It is not 1919. It is 2022.”
U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield at a U.N. Security Council emergency meeting on Ukraine.
