January 24, 2022

The latest developments in the growing conflict between Russia and Ukraine:

• NATO said Monday its members are sending more ships and fighter jets to eastern Europe in response to Russia’s military buildup along its border with Ukraine.

• The U.S. State Department late Sunday ordered the departure of eligible family members from the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv and authorized the voluntary departure of U.S. direct hire employees.

• The State Department also reissued two “Travel Advisory Level 4 – Do Not Travel” notices Sunday night, advising U.S. citizens against traveling to Ukraine and Russia, because of “ongoing tension” along the borders between the two countries, an increased threat of Russian military action and COVID-19.

• U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned Russia on Sunday that Washington knows “all of the tactics and techniques” that Moscow can deploy to undermine the Ukrainian government but will continue to engage in diplomatic talks in hopes of easing tensions in eastern Europe

• Moscow on Sunday rejected British accusations that Russia is plotting to replace the government of Ukraine with one more friendly to Russia. 

• Blinken authorized Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania to send U.S.-made anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine as its tensions with neighboring Russia continue to escalate. 

• The West is demanding that Russia pull its troops and weapons away from the Ukraine border while Moscow is pushing for NATO to curtail its operations in Eastern and Central Europe. Russia also insists that the Western defensive alliance reject Ukraine’s membership bid, a move the U.S. calls a “non-starter.”

• U.S. officials say Russia has amassed more than 100,000 troops along its border with Ukraine, including in Belarus and in occupied Crimea. 

Some material for this article came from The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.
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